Session is Over, But Some Work Just Beginning

Details: 14 June 2013

The Nebraska Legislature, which includes the 49 legislators and a strong support staff, finished another part of its history June 5, concluding a 90-day regular session for 2013. Officially, adjournment sine die occurred at 3:02 p.m.

In closing remarks just before making the final motion, the Speaker of the Legislature, Senator Greg Adams of York, presented a couple of tallies: of 662 legislative bills introduced, 214 were passed into law; 104 of the introduced bills received priority designation, 71 of which were passed. Speaker Adams described these results as "pretty good," about average compared to previous years.

Pursuant to protocol, Governor Dave Heineman presented closing remarks, thanking the legislators for their work, calling it a "good legislative session," citing accomplishments and outcomes from his perspective and identifying several senators involved with such matters. He made a point of thanking "the many senators (how many he didn’t say) who questioned the affordability and sustainability of expanding Medicaid." He saluted Senator Mike Gloor, chairman of the Banking, Commerce and Insurance Committee, and a leading opponent of Medicaid expansion, for "leadership on numerous issues that will maximize our state’s rights under the constraints of the federal health care law." He didn’t describe those issues. And he didn’t mention the leadership of Senator Kathy Campbell, chairperson of the equally implicated Health and Human Services Committee, but a leading proponent of Medicaid expansion.

It is too early to assess the quality of the work or its real impacts. That takes considerable time following implementation. Seventy-five of the passed bills had an "emergency clause," which means they took effect as soon as they were approved by the Governor (or overridden by the Legislature); some of those bills have specified operative dates. The balance of legislation will take effect Sept. 5, three calendar months after adjournment of the legislative session, as prescribed by the Nebraska Constitution.

Good, bad or inconsequential, one result Nebraskans can count on is that the legislators expanded the scope and authority of state and local governments. Anyone with enough curiosity, motivation and time, could study this phenomenon by reviewing the statements of intent and fiscal notes that exist on every bill.

Although their regular session is over, 22 of the legislators won’t have much of a break in their legislative obligations. They constitute the membership of two key groups assigned to study highly significant public-policy issues prior to the 2014 session.

Legislative Resolution 155 creates "a special legislative committee," designated as the Tax Modernization Committee. This new, special committee has 14 members. The chairman is Senator Galen Hadley, who is the regular chairman of the Revenue Committee. All other members of that committee are on the special committee: Senators Paul Schumacher, Tom Hansen, Burke Harr, Beau McCoy, Pete Pirsch and Charlie Janssen. Five other chairpersons are on the special committee: Heath Mello (Appropriations); Kathy Campbell (Health and Human Services); Kate Sullivan (Education); Ken Schilz (Agriculture) and John Harms (Planning). The other two members were appointed by the Legislature’s Executive Board; both are from the Appropriations Committee: Jeremy Nordquist and Kate Bolz, who is the only first-year legislator among the 14.

The purpose of the study is to review and evaluate the sales-and-use tax, the income tax, property taxes and miscellaneous taxes and also tax credits and incentives. At a minimum, the following factors have to be considered: fairness, competitiveness, simplicity and compliance, stability, adequacy, and interrelationships among tax systems. The TMC’s first report is due by Dec. 15.

LR 22 requires the Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee, in cooperation with the Banking, Commerce and Insurance Committee, to convene a "Partnership Towards Nebraska’s Health Care System Transformation." The idea is to bring together a broad array of policymakers and stakeholders to pursue controlling health care costs and improving health care quality.

The goals of the partnership are set forth in LR 22: provide a comprehensive review of health-care delivery, cost and coverage demands in Nebraska; engage partners in dialogue and public-policy discourse; develop a framework for health-care system transformation, to meet public health, workforce, delivery and budgetary challenges; and develop cooperative strategies and initiatives for the design, implementation, and accountability of services while advancing the overall health of Nebraskans.

Presumably, the thrust of LR 22 would have surfaced in some form anyway, but some impetus surely came from the Legislature’s controversial rejection of LB 577, proposing to expand eligibility for Medicaid coverage. The resolution also is part of Nebraska’s response to the anxiety and uncertainty of federal health-care-reform.

Senators Campbell, Schumacher and Pirsch will be especially busy. They are members of both the Tax Modernization Committee and Health Care System Transformation Partnership.