LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Gov. Pete Ricketts has signed a bill to extend educational benefits to veterans and their spouses, despite concerns that it could contradict Nebraska’s same-sex marriage ban.

The Republican governor announced his decision Friday in a letter to lawmakers. The bill was passed to comply with congressional mandates so veterans can collect federal education benefits.

Ricketts says he agrees with the bill’s goal, but is concerned about federal guidance that suggests states have to recognize same-sex marriages to participate in the federal program. He says he’ll challenge any efforts to undermine Nebraska’s constitution, which defines marriage as between a man and a woman.

Sen. Sue Crawford of Bellevue says her bill was carefully crafted, and she disagrees with the governor but will work with him if a problem arises.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska lawmakers have approved a bill designed to give nurse practitioners more independence.

Senators voted 46-0 Friday to pass the bill, which was vetoed last year by then-Gov. Dave Heineman. Last year’s session ended before lawmakers had a chance to attempt an override.

The bill by Sen. Sue Crawford of Bellevue would remove a requirement that nurse practitioners get a written agreement to consult with a doctor before they can practice. The so-called integrated practice agreements are designed to ensure that a physician is available for collaboration or referral if a patient doesn’t respond to treatment.

Supporters of the bill say the agreements make it harder to recruit well-trained nurses and keep them in the state. Doctors expressed concerns about patient safety.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Lawmakers have confirmed Scott Frakes as the new director of Nebraska’s embattled corrections department.

Senators on Friday voted 41-0 for Frakes, a former deputy director in Washington state’s prison system. Frakes was appointed by Gov. Pete Ricketts.

Frakes told a legislative committee that he’ll work to restore the department’s reputation and to reduce crowding.

Frakes replaces Michael Kenney, who announced his retirement earlier this month after nearly a year and a half as director. The department has faced criticism for miscalculating hundreds of prison sentences, overcrowding and the use of a re-entry furlough program that some senators say is illegal.

It also has come under fire for releasing inmate Nikko Jenkins without supervision. Jenkins went on to kill four people in Omaha.

• Today: Partly sunny, with a high near 23. Wind chill values as low as -18. South southeast wind 6 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 22 mph.
• Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 10. Wind chill values as low as -4. South southeast wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 22 mph.
• Saturday: Mostly cloudy, with a high near 28. Wind chill values as low as -4. South southeast wind 8 to 11 mph.
• Saturday Night: A 20 percent chance of snow. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 15. South southeast wind 5 to 8 mph becoming north after midnight.
• Sunday: Partly sunny, with a high near 34. North wind 6 to 9 mph.
• Sunday Night: A 20 percent chance of snow after midnight. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 18.
• Monday: A 20 percent chance of snow. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 36.
• Monday Night: A chance of snow. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 22.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska’s longest-serving senator is pushing once again to end the state’s mountain lion hunting season.

Sen. Ernie Chambers of Omaha argued Thursday that the population in Nebraska is so small that there’s no need for a state hunting season to manage the animals.

The Game and Parks Commission estimates that 22 mountain lions lived in Nebraska’s Pine Ridge region as of June 2014. The commission opposes the bill, saying it should have the authority to manage the population.

Chambers says the 2012 law that allowed mountain lion hunting was based on irrational fears. If the Natural Resources Committee doesn’t advance it, he says he’ll use procedural tactics to try to pull it from the committee or attach it as an amendment to other bills.

GERING, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska man has been convicted of fatally beating of his girlfriend’s 2-year-old daughter.

After just over an hour of deliberation Thursday, jurors in Gering found 28-year-old Dustin Chauncey guilty of child abuse resulting in the death in the killing of Juliette Geurts in July 2008. Investigators dismissed two other charges against Chauncey because of the statute of limitations.

Chauncey and Juliette’s mother, Charyse Geurts, were living together when the girl was found dead in her crib. Autopsy results revealed she died from internal organ damage caused by blunt force trauma.

Following the guilty verdict, the court ordered that Geurts, who was being held for refusing to testify Wednesday, be released and any contempt proceedings be dismissed.

A sentencing hearing for Chauncey has been set for April 10.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts has signed a bill designed to keep the state’s cigar bars in business.

The new law approved Thursday authorizes cigar smoking in licensed establishments. It was introduced after the Nebraska Supreme Court struck down a 2009 law that allowed patrons to smoke cigars in cigar bars and shops.

Before the August ruling, indoor smoking was allowed in cigar bars, hotel guest rooms and tobacco-only retailers.

The law by Sen. Tyson Larson of O’Neill makes clear that state lawmakers intended to create a legal exemption for those establishments so they could continue to operate. It’s written so it will stand up to the court’s review.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Placing a ballot question before voters could get easier under a bill Nebraska lawmakers will debate this year.

The Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee voted 7-0 Thursday to advance a proposal that would let petition organizers pay circulators by the signature.

A 2008 ban on signature-based compensation forces groups to pay petition circulators hourly. Sen. Mike Groene of North Platte, who introduced the measure, says most citizen groups don’t have the resources to pay circulators hourly.

Paying by the signature creates an incentive for circulators to gather more, although some critics argue that it encourages fraud and aggressive behavior.

Committee chairman Sen. John Murante of Gretna says advancing the bill could help to avoid lawsuits that may arise if the ban stays in place.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A bill that would allow more women to qualify for Medicaid family planning services has stalled in the Nebraska Legislature.

Supporters fell two votes short Thursday of the 25 needed to advance it, while 21 lawmakers opposed it.

Sen. Jeremy Nordquist of Omaha says his measure would have prevented unwanted pregnancies, saving the state millions each year and significantly reducing the number of abortions in Nebraska. It also would have funneled some of those savings to the Every Woman Matters program, which funds cancer screenings and mammograms for women ages 40 to 64.

Opponents argued the bill’s savings were only hypothetical, and described it as a partial Medicaid expansion. Abortion opponents said the bill was the incorrect way to effectively reduce abortions.

ATLANTA (AP) — The makers of the nasal spray version of the flu vaccine say they now know why it didn’t protect young children against swine flu — the doses got too warm.

The spray FluMist works well for most flu strains, but small studies found it didn’t work very well against the swine flu bug that first emerged in 2009.

The maker AstraZeneca has been investigating since the problem came to light last year. At a medical meeting Thursday, officials said they concluded that the swine flu part of the vaccine is unusually sensitive to heat. The vaccine is refrigerated.

A company official said a more stable strain would be used in the future.

The swine flu strain hasn’t been a big player this flu season.