LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska senator is proposing a series of state tax credits to address the high cost of child care and to increase access to early childhood programs.
Sen. Heath Mello of Omaha introduced legislation Monday that he says would focus on the state’s youngest children, particularly those who are at risk of failing in school.
Mello says his bill, the School Readiness Tax Credit Act, is modeled after a similar package of tax credits that began in Louisiana in 2008. He says the bill is intended to support families and the businesses that employ them.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska senator wants student journalists to be guaranteed the same First Amendment rights as their professional counterparts.
Sen. Al Davis of Hyannis introduced a bill Monday that would grant college journalists the right to exercise freedom of speech and of the press in school-sponsored media such as student newspapers, regardless of whether the publication is supported financially by the school or not.
Davis says the bill was inspired by similar legislation passed in other states to prevent school administrators from blocking unflattering stories. Davis says college students are given the right to vote and serve in the military, so college journalists should also have the right to do their jobs and hold leadership accountable.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska state government collected about $14 million less than expected in December.
The Department of Revenue reported Monday that net receipts for the month totaled $369 million, which is nearly 4 percent below the state’s certified forecast of $383 million.
Net sales-and-use tax receipts were about 9 percent lower than expected, while individual income tax receipts were more than 3 percent lower. Net corporate income tax collections were 8 percent above the forecast, and net miscellaneous receipts were more than 18 percent below.
Department of Revenue economist Hoa Phu Tran says the lower-than-projected tax collections are largely driven by the slowdown in sales tax revenue, which is due to recent declines in farm income. Tran says the overall state economy appears to be faring well.
Andrew D. Lee has filed for re-election to the North Platte city council. First being elected in 2012 he will be bidding for his second term to serve the people of the third ward of North Platte. He defeated incumbent Dan McGuire in 2012.
The areas of focus for Lee, in his second term, will be narrowed into three categories. Recreation, Housing, and Career Mobility.
Recreation will be a large piece of the puzzle for North Platte in the coming years. An aging Cody Pool, the Rec Center needs renovations, running trails are incomplete, and then working on new projects. New projects that should be considered are working with existing parks in the city to develop new splash pads, creation of a water park, and adding new areas for kids and families to have outdoor entertainment. Other areas of concern will be helping nonprofits and private groups develop more year round facilities to keep residents entertained. Since 2012 the city council voted to grant and loan money to develop Wild Bills Wings and Bowling that has since added on to bring in Laser Tag. Concerns from residents over a splash pad that is too small and has too many people have also been raised.
Housing is one of North Platte’s biggest concerns obstacles to growth. With not enough housing available in several price ranges it leave people stranded. The council in conjunction with the Chamber of Commerce and Development Corporation devised a ‘Shot in the Arm” plan. This program has spurred the creation of just under 50 units in North Platte (some still being finished). Houses from this project are supposed to help provide a cushion in expenses for the few remaining home builders to build more homes. People who only could find a $90,000 home can now move up to the $180,000 they wanted previously and those living in less can buy up the market for those $90,000 range homes. Mobile home standards were implemented since 2012 with the council and aim to curb substandard mobile homes from being moved in or around North Platte. This is where the housing task force found the most complaints from residents on substandard mobile homes. Now is the time we need to go back and look at what our second and third biggest problems were and attack those areas. There is still a lack of homes available in the rental market (Houses or Apartments) or Houses for Sale. We can do better, said Lee.
The Third leg of projects to work on in North Platte is Career mobility. North Platte has an unemployment of less than 2% (last projections seen). This is dangerously low. It means that people may have a career or job but other employers looking for places to locate do not see enough workforce in North Platte meaning that people are limited in their choices for competitive new positions. With a new Chamber and Economic Development Direction in Gary Person and Megan McGown to shed new ideas and thoughts on how to tackle this issue from 2016 and beyond. Career options and the ability to move up in your career should not mean you have to move to other communities. North Platte leads in fiber optic internet capability for high tech jobs, prime location along the Interstate and highways to move in any direction on roads and the Union Pacific Railroad to ship any manufactured items across the country. North Platte can do a better job selling this message and will, according to Lee.
A Hershey couple is facing numerous charges after they allegedly burglarized a home in North Platte.
At around 12:44 p.m., on January 8, North Platte Police were called to a residence in the 2200 block of West 9th Street, on the report of a burglary.
Officers met with the complainant who alleged that he had seen Roman Reyes and Robyn Jones leaving the home with stolen property in their hands. The suspects allegedly got into a vehicle and left the area.
Police say the complainant attempted to follow the duo, but quit when they began to drive recklessly.
The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office was contacted and asked to attempt to locate Reyes and Jones at their home in Hershey. They were contacted and transported to the North Platte Police Department, along with a bag that was in their possession.
Following an interview with investigators, Reyes and Jones were arrested and charged with felony burglary.
A search of the bag revealed small amounts of marijuana, suspected methamphetamine, and several items stolen in an unrelated case. As a result, both were also charged with possession of marijuana, possession of methamphetamine and misdemeanor theft.
Deputies later recovered property stolen from the residence on 9th Street at the couple’s home.
Both were jailed at the Lincoln County Detention Center.
After further investigation, it was determined that Reyes and Jones, along with Nina Green, had also stolen a bicycle and other items from a storage unit in the 1400 block of East 4th Street, on January 7. Green was charged with burglary as well, and an additional burglary charge was filed against Reyes and Jones.
A North Platte man has been charged with a felony after he allegedly stalked his girlfriend while a protection order was active against him.
According to North Platte Police, an officer met with a female on the evening of January 9, who was concerned that a car parked near her house was occupied by her ex-boyfriend, Jeffry Sierks.
The officer learned that the victim had an active protection order against Sierks, who had already contacted the victim numerous time via text message.
Additionally, police say, as the weekend progressed, there was evidence to suggest that Sierks had compromised the victim’s email and social media accounts.
On January 11, officers made contact with Sierks and placed him under arrest. He charged with violation of a protection order and felony stalking. The stalking charge was enhanced because it took place while a protection order was in place.
Sierks was jailed at the Lincoln County Detention Center.
It is with heavy hearts that we report that police have found the body of a former North Platte man who has been missing since Monday.
According to Lincoln Police, the body of Craig Baxter, 28, was found inside a car near 44th and O Streets in Lincoln on Sunday afternoon, by a passerby. They say the car was located inside a garage at an apartment complex.
Police did not release any details on Baxter’s death or its cause, but say foul play is not suspected.
Baxter was last seen leaving his sister and brother-in-law’s house early last Monday morning, and had not been seen or heard from since.
An extensive search by family members, law enforcement, private investigators and the public has been ongoing since Baxter went missing.
A page dedicated to finding Baxter has over 25,000 followers on Facebook.
Police say an investigation into Baxter’s death is ongoing.
Three men are facing charges following a pursuit in Lincoln County on Saturday afternoon.
At around 2:41 p.m., the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a gold or tan Camaro driving recklessly on Highway 30, eastbound from Hershey.
The caller advised that the vehicle was travelling well over the speed limit, and had thrown a beer bottle at them as they passed them.
Deputies were in the area and observed the vehicle traveling well over the posted speed limit. The deputies attempted to initiate a traffic stop and the vehicle fled, reaching speeds in excess of 80 mph.
Authorities say the vehicle went off the road and continued driving through fields at the north end of Range Road. At this point, deputies terminated the pursuit and watched the vehicle.
After damaging several fences and making its way back to Star Road, the driver reportedly failed to negotiate a T-intersection and became stuck.
Just as deputies arrived, the passengers were able to free the vehicle, but deputies conducted a “high-risk” traffic stop and were able to detain them.
The driver, identified as 24-year-old Joshua Holmes, of Cozad, resisted arrest and had to be physically restrained by officers. Holmes was eventually detained and charged with willful reckless driving, driving while intoxicated, flight to avoid arrest, open container of alcohol, resisting arrest, refusal to submit to a chemical/breath test and possession of drug paraphernalia.
The two passenger, 23-year-old Jesse Barnes, of North Platte, and 23-year-old John Machacek, of Sutherland, were charged with aiding and abetting flight to avoid arrest.
The trio was jailed at the Lincoln County Detention Center.
Lottery officials say no ticket has matched all six Powerball numbers.
That means the record $949.8 million jackpot is expected to soar to $1.3 billion for Wednesday’s drawing.
The odds to win were one in 292.2 million, and the numbers drawn were 32-16-19-57-34 and Powerball number 13.
Officials with the Multi-State Lottery Association, which runs the Powerball game, said they expected about 75 percent of the possible number combinations would have been bought for Saturday night’s drawing.
Since Nov. 4, the Powerball jackpot has grown from its $40 million starting point as no one has won the jackpot.
Powerball is played in 44 states as well as the District of Columbia, U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska senator is proposing a series of state tax credits to address the high cost of child care and to increase access to early childhood programs.
