LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska’s preliminary November unemployment rate of 2.8 percent matched the three previous months’ figures, according to figures released Friday by the Nebraska Labor Department.

The department said in a news release that the rate is down a tenth of a point from the year-ago figure of 2.9 percent. Last month’s Nebraska rate was well below the U.S. number, which also was unchanged: 3.7 percent.

“November was another strong month for manufacturing, with a 3 percent employment increase over the year,” said state Labor Commissioner John Albin. “The month also saw historical highs for both statewide labor force employment and Lincoln labor force employment.”

Nonfarm employment was 1,039,938, up 12,753 over the year and up 2,263 over the month, the report said. Private industries with the most growth year over year were professional and business services, up 4,881; leisure and hospitality services, up 3,546; and manufacturing, up 3,028. Month to month, the largest gains were seen in trade, transportation and utilities, up 4,024; education and health, up 468; and other services, up 26.

The preliminary Omaha-area rate for November declined to 2.5 percent from 2.6 in October. The new rate was a tenth of a point lower than the 2.6 percent of November 2017. Lincoln’s preliminary rate dropped three-tenths of a point, hitting 2.2 percent, compared with 2.5 percent in October. The year-ago figure was 2.3 percent. Grand Island’s preliminary rate for November was 2.6 percent, down a tenth from October’s 2.7 percent. The November 2017 figure was 2.7 percent.

The unemployment rates for Grand Island, Lincoln and Omaha have not been seasonally adjusted, so they cannot be directly compared with the state unemployment rate.

Here are preliminary area labor market unemployment rates for November, followed by the October rates:

— Beatrice: 2.4, 4.1

— Columbus: 2.3, 2.5

— Fremont: 2.2, 2.5

— Hastings: 2.4, 2.7

— Kearney: 2.0, 2.2

— Lexington: 2.3, 2.5

— Norfolk: 2.0, 2.3

— North Platte: 2.5, 2.8

— Red Willow: 1.9, 2.5

— Scottsbluff: 3.0, 3.0

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Visitors to the Nebraska Capitol can still take building tours on Christmas Eve even though most state offices will be closed.

The Capitol will be open for tours Monday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., on the hour, except for at noon. The Capitol will be closed on Tuesday for Christmas Day.

The Capitol’s 20-foot-tall Christmas tree is decorated with more than 150 specially commissioned ornaments celebrating Nebraska’s diverse landscape, culture and agricultural heritage. The tree will remain on the second-floor rotunda through Thursday.

The new Nebraska-shaped ornaments can be viewed at https://ne150.org/ornaments/ .

The Capitol’s 14th-floor observation decks are open on Monday, weather permitting.

Anyone seeking more information can call the Capitol at 402-471-0448.

Investigators with the WING (Western Nebraska Intelligence and Narcotics Group) Task Force and Scotts Bluff County Sheriff’s Office have arrested two men and seized dozens of firearms and controlled substances during an operation in Scotts Bluff County.

WING investigators, with the assistance of the Scotts Bluff County Sheriff’s Office and the Nebraska State Patrol, executed a search warrant on a residence at 160264 Spring Creek Road in Mitchell during the evening hours of Tuesday, December 18. During the search, investigators discovered 47 guns, one pound of methamphetamine, one pound of marijuana, and drug paraphernalia.

Shaun Turner, 40, and David Loos, 66, were arrested for possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, possession of marijuana with intent to deliver, possession of a weapon during the commission of a felony, and no drug tax stamp. Both men were lodged in Scotts Bluff County Jail.

The investigation is ongoing and additional charges may be added.

WING is a multi-agency drug and violent crime task force that includes investigators from the Nebraska State Patrol and seven panhandle police and sheriff’s departments.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A man convicted of a 1988 double murder in western Nebraska is seeking a new trial based on new evidence and sworn testimony from two women that a different man is responsible.

Attorneys for Jeffrey J. Boppre presented the evidence Thursday in a motion in Scotts Bluff County District Court.

Boppre is serving two life sentences for the murders of Richard Valdez and Sharon Condon in a Scottsbluff home. Boppre has maintained for three decades he was framed, but the Nebraska judicial system has upheld his 1989 convictions numerous times.

The filing includes testimony from Sheila Janis that another man, John Yellowboy, admitted to the killings after kidnapping her and raping her at the murder scene. Another woman, Melissa Martinez, says she was hiding in the home during the murders.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska’s and Iowa’s populations continued growing at a slow, steady pace over the past year, according to estimates the U.S. Census Bureau released Wednesday.

Nebraska gained 11,693 residents in the year ending this past July 1, a growth rate of 0.61 percent. Iowa’s estimated population grew by 12,508 residents, a rate of 0.4 percent.

The United States population grew by more than 2 million to 327,167,434. The nation’s population grew at a rate of 0.62 percent.

Researcher David Drozd with the University of Nebraska’s Center for Public Affairs Research said Nebraska’s growth over the past decade is good news for the state.

“With Nebraska again having an annual growth rate near the U.S. average, it is now almost certain that Nebraska will keep its current three congressional seats after the 2020 census,” Drozd said.

In both Nebraska and Iowa, most of the population growth is in metropolitan areas while rural parts of both states continue to lose residents.

Nebraska’s and Iowa’s populations have both now increased for 31 years in a row. The last decline happened in 1987 during the farm crisis.

Gary Krob, coordinator of Iowa’s State Data Center, said Iowa recorded more births than deaths in the past year and saw more increases in people moving to the state.

Krob said that helped Iowa grow faster than the neighboring states of Illinois, Kansas, Wisconsin and Missouri.

NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (AP) — A judge has ordered a man who authorities say killed six members of a Nebraska family more than 40 years ago to remain in state care.

Lincoln County District Judge Michael Piccolo said Wednesday that 73-year-old Erwin Charles Simants is still mentally ill and dangerous, based upon a diagnosis by experts at the state psychiatric hospital in Lincoln. He’s been diagnosed as schizophrenic.

Prosecutors say Simants shot and killed Henry and Audrey Kellie, their son David and three of their grandchildren in 1975 at the Kellies’ Sutherland home.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A federal judge has refused to dismiss a lawsuit challenging Nebraska’s attempt to regulate tobacco sales by two Winnebago Tribe subsidiaries.

HCI Distribution and Rock River Manufacturing said in their April lawsuit that tribal commercial activities are protected under federal law and that Nebraska has no regulatory authority over the tribe’s cigarette operations.

The Sioux City Journal reports that U.S. District Judge John Gerrard said in his ruling Wednesday that more evidence will be needed to settle issues raised in the case, so he is letting the case proceed. The state had sought the dismissal.

The Nebraska Department of Revenue issued tax assessments against several reservation-based cigarette retailers in 2014, saying they made sales subject to state cigarette tax laws.

CAMBRIDGE, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say four teenagers are facing charges that they planned to attack a high school in south-central Nebraska.

The Furnas County attorney charged two 18-year-olds and two 17-year-olds with felony terroristic threats related to a plan to attack Cambridge High School on Nov. 30.

Court records allege the students had been discussing an attack for months. When one student transferred to a different school, they tried to recruit another student.

One student told police he thought the plan was a joke but wasn’t sure if the others felt that way.

Cambridge Public Schools Superintendent Greg Shepard told NTV the school received a call from a parent about a potential threat, prompting it to contact the sheriff’s office and state patrol.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska’s labor shortage was one of the main concerns raised at town hall events held by a business group seeking public input on a statewide economic development plan.

The Omaha World-Herald reports that Blueprint Nebraska began its road show this week in Omaha, Lincoln and Norfolk.

Business and civic leaders focused on the region’s low unemployment rate and the difficulty of finding workers.

David Brown is the president of the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce. He says municipalities need to have competitive career opportunities, as well as amenities and services to attract employees and their families.

Participants discussed how to improve affordable housing, child care and the education system. Attendees also raised concerns about the need for public transportation to lure top talent who desire an urban experience.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The University of Nebraska has created a new teaching academy program to recruit, retain and develop a highly qualified and more diverse teaching workforce needed to meet the state’s rising school enrollment.

A gift from the William and Ruth Scott Family Foundation is underwriting the Teachers Scholars Academy, providing four-year scholarships that will cover full tuition plus $8,000 annually for other educational costs for 104 students. Forty scholarships will be at the system’s Kearney and Lincoln campuses and 24 will be at the Omaha campus.

“The Teachers Scholars Academy is about Nebraska’s future,” University of Nebraska President Hank Bounds said.

The number of college students in Nebraska majoring in education has fallen to 3,600 from nearly 5,400 just nine years ago, the university said in a news release Monday. At the same time, enrollment in Nebraska’s schools has risen to more than 361,000 from 334,000.

The academy is open to incoming first-year students who have chosen early education, elementary or secondary education majors in an array of programs.

“Our program aim is to prepare the teachers who will be the backbone of school transformation, reflective thinkers who will continue to grow and develop beyond their degree,” said Beth Doll, interim dean of the College of Education and Human Sciences at the Lincoln campus.

Academy students will have access to learning communities and peer networking opportunities to strengthen retention and maximize their professional development.

“It’s going to take grit — this program is going to be more challenging than ordinary teacher education,” said Guy Trainin, who will run the program in Lincoln. “Nevertheless, academy students will live and study in a supportive community with a diverse, dynamic and vibrant group of peers.”

The first academy groups will begin classes next fall. The University of Nebraska Foundation plans to raise money for future academy classes.