LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — An effort to increase the number of first-time homebuyers in Nebraska is drawing scrutiny from some lawmakers who say the proposal could lead to abuse.

The measure presented to a legislative committee Wednesday would allow residents to set aside up to $150,000 in a special account to help their children or grandchildren cover a down payment on their first home.

Contributions would be in post-tax dollars, but earnings on the money after it’s deposited would be tax-free. Sen. Joni Craighead of Omaha says she introduced it in hopes that it would encourage young people to settle in Nebraska.

Some senators say the bill could favor wealthy families and might enable some people to avoid paying taxes.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court will not take up a Lincoln businessman’s case against Nebraska banking regulators.

The country’s high court denied Bob Bennie Jr.’s petition on Tuesday.

Bennie filed the petition after the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last year refused to reinstate his lawsuit, even though the judges said the regulators were wrong to target the financial adviser partly because of his criticism of President Barack Obama.

Bennie, a Lincoln financial adviser and tea party activist, called Obama a “communist” and an “evil man” in a 2010 interview with the Journal Star. Regulators cited those comments in emails to Bennie’s employer during their investigation into whether he had violated any regulations. The regulators ultimately took no action against him.

Thankfully, sometimes car accidents look much worse than they actually are.  That was the case in North Platte on Wednesday morning.

At around 10:35 a.m., officers responded to the report of a one-vehicle accident in the 1600 block of East Fourth Street.

Officers arrived and discovered that a 2004 Toyota Sienna minivan, driven by 47-year-old Noor Omar, of Aurora, Colorado, had veered off of the roadway and struck a light pole owned by Municipal Light and Water.

Following an investigation, it was determined that Noor had taken his eyes off the roadway, causing him to veer to the right and strike the light pole.

Investigator John Deal said Noor complained of lower leg pain and his passenger, 32-year-old Muktar Abdulahi, also of Aurora, complained of chest pain.  Deal says neither man was transported to the hospital from the scene and that seatbelts were in use.

No citations were issued

COLUMBUS, Neb. (AP) — A Columbus woman has been given 30 months in prison for stabbing her brother.

Online court records show 21-year-old Alicia Martinez was sentenced Friday in Platte County District Court. She’d taken a deal and pleaded no contest to attempted assault. Prosecutors dropped a charge of attempted murder and dropped weapons, drugs and traffic charges in exchange for her plea.

The records say Rogelio Barrios told officers that when he awoke in his bedroom during the stabbing July 11, he found his sister standing by his bed, holding an 8-inch boning knife. The documents say he was stabbed six times, suffering wounds in his chest, arms and a hand.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A law that bars Nebraska public school teachers from wearing habits, yarmulkes, burqas and other religious clothing could soon get overturned under a bill pending in the Legislature.

The bill presented at a hearing Tuesday would end Nebraska’s ban on religious garb in classrooms, which was passed in 1919 under pressure from the Ku Klux Klan amid a national a wave of anti-Catholic sentiment.

The law is rarely enforced but came to a senator’s attention after a Catholic nun applied for a substitute teaching job at a public high school in his district. Sister Madeleine Miller says a school administrator told her the law would not allow her to wear a habit while teaching, even though she had done so while teaching at a local state college.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska motorists could show opposition to abortion on their license plates under a bill headed to debate in the full Legislature.

The Transportation and Telecommunications Committee voted 8-0 Tuesday to advance the proposal.

The measure would require the Department of Motor Vehicles to design “Choose Life” license plates that “reflect support for the protection of Nebraska’s children.” It’s backed by several groups that oppose abortion, but faces criticism from groups that support abortion rights.

Motorists would have to pay an additional fee for the plate, which would go into a state fund aimed at preventing child abuse.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska senator who opposes the death penalty is once again trying to abolish the punishment even though voters reinstated it last year.

Sen. Ernie Chambers of Omaha introduced the repeal bill on Tuesday. Chambers has tried to outlaw the punishment for roughly four decades.

Lawmakers voted to abolish the punishment in 2015 over Gov. Pete Ricketts’ veto, but the law never went into effect. A group partially financed by Ricketts responded with a petition drive that suspended the law until voters decided whether to keep it.

In November, 61 percent of voters who cast a ballot on the issue chose to overturn the Legislature’s decision.