LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Legislature is set to consider several measures that aim to help felons re-entering society after prison as part of what supporters say is a comprehensive approach to criminal justice reform.

Legislative committees have advanced bills that would eliminate a two-year waiting period for felons to vote, prohibit private employers from asking about criminal history on job applications, require prisons to provide state-issued ID cards before inmates leave and allow people who have been incarcerated to petition to have their convictions set aside.

The four measures are waiting on votes from the full Legislature.

American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska executive director Danielle Conrad says the bills, which come with no or minimal price tags, are a “common-sense, low-cost alternative” to more prison spending.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is offering boater safety classes.

A list of boating safety classes is available at boatsafenebraska.org. The list includes six-hour classroom courses and three-hour home-study review and test courses.

The commission says people born after Dec. 31, 1985, must have successfully completed the Nebraska boating safety course in order to legally operate a motorboat or personal watercraft in the state.

CAMARILLO, Calif. (AP) — The average price of a gallon of regular-grade gasoline dipped about a penny nationally during the past two weeks, to $2.34.

Industry analyst Trilby Lundberg said Sunday that the price drop comes as crude oil prices also slipped during the same period.

Gas in San Francisco was the highest in the contiguous United States at an average of $3.01 a gallon Friday. The lowest was in Tulsa, Oklahoma, at $2.01 per gallon.

The U.S. average diesel price is $2.57, also down one cent.

The Buffalo County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a single vehicle fatal traffic crash on March 25, 2017, approximately a half mile south of Pleasanton, NE on Highway 10.  The crash was reported at approximately 2 AM; the exact time of the crash is unknown at this time.

According to a preliminary investigation, a 1988 Ford Mustang was traveling northbound on Highway 10 when it left the roadway, entered the east ditch, struck an embankment and rolled.  The driver of the vehicle, Chris M. Avey AKA Christen M. Avey, age 51 of Ravenna, NE was ejected from the vehicle.  There were no passengers.  Mr. Avey was transported by ambulance to the CHI Good Samaritan Hospital where he later died.  The Buffalo County Attorney’s Office has ordered an autopsy.

Assisting deputies were members of the Kearney Police Department, Kearney / Buffalo County Fatality Accident Reconstruction Team, Pleasanton Volunteer Fire and Rescue personnel, CHI GSH paramedics and Buffalo County Attorney’s Office.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska State College Board has approved room and board increases starting in the fall.

Board trustees approved hikes Friday from 3.5 percent to 5 percent at the state’s three state colleges: Peru State, Wayne State and Chadron State.

About 30 scenarios for room and board were provided, comparing the current rates with those of the next school year. About two-thirds amounted to 5 percent increases.

Meal plans vary based on how many meals a student desires. Housing rates also differ, depending on the residence hall, whether it’s a single- or double-occupant room and other factors.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A state agency wants to know how the fall 2016 turkey hunt went for hunters in Nebraska.

The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is asking hunters via email to participate in a survey that will end early next month. If the hunters didn’t provide email addresses when they bought their permits, they can go online at http://bit.ly/2nRDB95 to participate.

The survey asks hunters about their turkey harvest as well as about their hunting experiences and efforts. The information will be used to estimate statewide harvest, which is used to inform turkey management decisions.

Results of past surveys can be viewed online at http://bit.ly/2nRRC70.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Union Pacific is renewing its campaign to urge people to stay off railroad tracks.

The railroad has created a series of animated videos about the potential dangers of railroad tracks that Union Pacific posts on social media sites.

The short videos highlight the risks of taking a selfie on railroad tracks or posing for high school senior pictures on or near train tracks.

The videos are designed to be easily shared on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and other social media sites.

Federal statistics show that more than 400 people are killed nationwide each year while walking or standing on railroad property.

 

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says “it’s a great day for American jobs” after his administration issued a permit to build the long-delayed Keystone XL pipeline.

The decision marks a reversal from the Obama administration and clears the way for the $8 billion project to be completed.

The president says the decision ushers in a “new era” of American energy policy and will reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil.

The decision caps a years-long fight between environmental groups and energy industry advocates over the pipeline’s fate.

It’s one of several steps the administration is expected to take in the coming weeks to prioritize economic development over environmental concerns.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A new report says Nebraska’s preliminary February unemployment rate of 3.2 percent was a tenth of a point under January’s rate of 3.3 percent.

The Nebraska Labor Department said in a news release Friday that the rate matched the February 2016 rate. The state’s newest figure also remained well below the preliminary national figure of 4.7 percent for February.

The report says Nebraska nonfarm employment remained above 1 million last month. The private industry segments with the most growth over the month were education and health services, leisure and hospitality, and professional and business services.

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Prosecutors say a North Texas man must serve 10 years in federal prison for a cattle-buying scam that cost a Nebraska company more than $5 million.

Tony Eugene Lyon of Fort Worth was sentenced Friday in Fort Worth. The 52-year-old Lyon in November pleaded guilty to wire fraud.

Lyon was known to be involved in the buying, fattening and sale of cattle.

Prosecutors say Lyon in 2015 scammed Midwestern Cattle Marketing of Sidney, Nebraska. The firm, which bought and sold cattle for third-party clients, went out of business after the $5.1 million loss.

Officials say Lyon became an MCM representative and was authorized to write company checks, using a signature stamp. Prosecutors say Lyon operated a check-kiting scheme involving a fictitious company and kept MCM funds for himself.