• Today: Sunny, with a high near 59. Breezy, with a northwest wind 8 to 13 mph increasing to 20 to 25 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 34 mph.
• Tonight: Partly cloudy, with a low around 33. West northwest wind 8 to 13 mph.
• Friday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 56. Breezy, with a northwest wind 14 to 19 mph increasing to 20 to 25 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 34 mph.
• Friday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 26. Blustery, with a northwest wind 15 to 20 mph decreasing to 8 to 13 mph after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 28 mph.

(AP) — The federal government is issuing its first guidelines to schools on how to protect children with food allergies.

The voluntary advice calls on schools to take such steps as restricting nuts, shellfish or other foods that can cause allergic reactions, and to make sure emergency allergy medicines like EpiPens are available.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention posted the guidelines on its website Wednesday.

About 15 states — and many schools or school districts — already have policies of their own. But experts say many of their policies are probably not comprehensive.

A recent CDC survey estimated that about 1 in 20 U.S. children have food allergies.

(AP) — A Lexington man has been sentenced to federal prison for helping to falsify a tax return.

Donald Ondrak was given a year and a day behind bars. He must serve a year of supervised release after he leaves custody, and he was fined $5,000.

The 61-year-old Ondrak has already surrendered his license as a certified public accountant.

Prosecutors say that in 2007, Ondrak filed a tax return for a medical equipment business. The return included a fraudulent $800,000 management fee expense that lowered the tax liability by nearly $255,000.

Sworn and civilian employees of the Nebraska State Patrol (NSP) were recognized as employees and supervisor/managers of the year during an October 30, ceremony in the Rotunda of the Nebraska State Capitol.

Trooper Bill Price, honored as the sworn employee of the year, is a 24-year veteran of the Nebraska State Patrol assigned to Troop B- Norfolk in the Field Services Division. As the Troop B Community Service Officer, Trooper Price has a direct impact on the safety of Nebraska citizens.  By developing and implementing programs aimed at young adults, Trooper Price works tirelessly to raise awareness and save lives by reducing the potential for serious injury and fatality crashes. Trooper Price is also credited with coordinating a display of Nebraska State Patrol history at the Elkhorn Valley Museum in Norfolk.

Kim Heitmann, Accountant I, State Headquarters- Lincoln, was honored as the civilian employee of the year. Employed with NSP since 2011, Kim is always one to go above and beyond the call of duty. In the past year she was asked to assume extra responsibilities while a fellow employee was out on medical leave which required her to complete multiple payroll cycles on her own with little or no assistance.  Kim’s dedication ensured the NSP payroll for more than 700 employees was processed in a timely and accurate fashion.

Lieutenant Dennis Leonard, a 27-year agency veteran, was honored as the sworn supervisor/manager of the year. Assigned to the Investigative Services Division in Troop C-Grand Island, Lt. Leonard has proven to be an effective leader. Over the past year, Lt. Leonard was called on to act as the statewide Investigative Services Captain. This duty assignment added additional travel and responsibilities which Lt. Leonard handled with professionalism and commitment, paving the way for a smooth transition and orientation when a new Captain was named.  Lt. Leonard is also credited with improving the security and communications operations as the Nebraska State Fair transitioned to its new home in Grand Island.

The civilian supervisor/manager of the year honor goes to Jennifer Kirkpatrick, who received the honor for her work as Research Manager in the Criminal Identification Division in Lincoln.  Since joining the Agency in June 2010, Jennifer has overseen a number of projects including the research and implementation of the upgrade to the statewide Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS). Her ability to work with multiple agencies to meet network needs was paramount to the projects’ success.

October is State Employee Recognition month. The award recipients were honored during a ceremony held in the Rotunda of the State Capitol. A reception following the ceremony was held at the Governor’s residence.

Local attorney Russ Jones has announced that he is withdrawing from the race for State Senate.

In a news release Wednesday, Jones said he decided to put family first.

Jones said he realized his campaign began after speaking with the North Platte Area Chamber of Commerce Legislative Committee on September 11th.

Shortly thereafter, he scheduled tour of North Platte Community College with President Ryan Purdy and Vice President Marcus Garstecki and was so impressed with the “progressive thought process of the administrators,” he realized how rewarding it would be to serve the 42nd District.

However, upon returning home and seeing his son, a Freshman in high school, Jones realized he had a tough choice to make.

After discussing the matter with family, friends and supporters, he decided that, while his son was alright with his run for the Legislature, he was not.

Jones said, “The decision to run was difficult, the decision to not run was not.”

As for the next couple of months, Jones says he will take time to meet with and thank his supporters.

Two candidates, Scott Dulin and Roric Paulman, are still in the running for the seat being vacated by Tom Hansen.

A house in North Platte sustained significant damage in a fire Tuesday morning.

The North Platte Fire Department responded to the fire near the corner of 12th and Eastman at around 6:30 a.m after a citizen observed smoke coming from the structure.

Fire officials say the fire started in the basement of the residence and caused heavy smoke damage.  They say fighting the fire was difficult because it had burned through the floor leaving a big hole which firefighters had to work around.  A search of the residence revealed that no one was home at the time.

The cause of the fire is unknown at this time.  North Platte Fire Marshal George Lewis is investigating the blaze.

The home is owned by Alpha Stubbs.

(AP) — A consultant is warning that rural Nebraska could lose high-quality broadband service unless the state provides funding to offset a loss in federal subsidies.

Michael Balhoff said Tuesday that small carriers are at risk because of new regulations that will reduce the federal payments for cable, fiber optic and DSL connections in remote areas.

Rural areas are more expensive for carriers because the service has to cover greater distances to reach relatively few paying customers. Balhoff told the Legislature’s Transportation and Telecommunications Committee that without the funding, some remote areas would turn into an “economic wasteland” with little or more expensive service.

The hearing was called to study the role of Nebraska’s universal service fund. Money from the fund comes from a state fee tacked onto consumers’ telephone bills.

(AP) — Resources are available for ranchers who experienced cattle losses in the blizzard that struck northwest Nebraska.

The Nebraska Natural Resources Conservation Service has money available to help with cattle disposals. The deadline to apply is Nov. 15. Ranchers can call 308-432-4616 to see if they qualify.

The Chadron Community Foundation has created a relief fund to help with fence repair, carcass disposals, animal care and other needs. Applications are available through University of Nebraska extension offices or First National Bank of Chadron.

The Farm Crisis Response Council is offering mental health counseling. The number is 1-800-464-0258.

Mental health services are also available through the state by calling 308-635-3173, Crossroads Resources in Chadron at 308-432-3920, or Western Community Health Resources in Chadron at 308-432-8979. The Crawford office’s number is 308-665-1770.

(AP) — Nebraska’s farmers have used the relatively dry weather across the state to catch up on the corn harvest.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture says 55 percent of the corn had been harvested by the end of last week, matching the yearly average by this date. The harvest lagged the average by 12 percentage points the week before.

The corn condition was rated at 68 percent good or excellent.

The USDA report says the soybean harvest was 94 percent complete — 6 percentage points ahead of the 88 percent average by this date.

(AP) — Nebraska officials are releasing a survey aimed at examining serious behavioral health challenges affecting children and teenagers.

The state Department of Health and Human Services is asking youth, their families and community providers to complete the survey by Nov. 22.

Nebraska officials say they want to know what services are important to children and teens with serious emotional disturbances. They aim to then develop a strategic plan for a system that better serves them.

The survey includes questions about the accessibility of services, family involvement and system strengths and weaknesses.