LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska attorney general’s office is defending language approved for a 2016 death penalty ballot measure.

State attorneys argued in a court filing Tuesday that the ballot language is “sufficient, fair and not misleading.” Death penalty opponents have challenged the wording in court, saying it’s slanted in favor of the death penalty.

The ballot language informs voters that retaining the repeal law would eliminate capital punishment and change the “maximum” penalty for first-degree murder to life in prison.

Critics say the word “maximum” is misleading because it incorrectly implies that first-degree murder convicts could face a lesser sentence than life in prison.

Nebraska lawmakers abolished the death penalty in May, but the repeal measure was suspended until voters decide the issue next year.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska regulators have quietly inspected Planned Parenthood of the Heartland’s Lincoln and Omaha clinics at the request of Republican Gov. Pete Ricketts.

Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services surveyors visited the clinics in August. Omaha clinic director Brenda Harvey said surveyors were interested in speaking with staff who handle fetal tissue.

The visits came after a group accusing Planned Parenthood of illegally selling fetal tissue released videos, prompting congressional inquiries and multiple state investigations this summer.

A department spokeswoman said she could provide little information about the inspections, but confirmed regulators made a similar visit to the Bellevue clinic.

The results appear similar to those of public investigations of Planned Parenthood clinics elsewhere that returned no evidence the organization violated state laws for handling fetal tissue.