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PROPERTY TAXES
OMAHA—Nebraska property owners saw a 5.3 percent increase in their property taxes in 2008 although state tax credits helped limit the size of those bills in 2007 and 2008. Nebraska Property Tax Administrator Ruth Sorensen released a report Tuesday detailing the roughly $131.2 million increase in property taxes the state’s residents will pay for 2008. By Josh Funk.
SCHOOL SPENDING
LINCOLN—Many school districts across the state are flunking when it comes to wise spending of taxpayer dollars, a state lawmaker says. And if he has his way, they could be forced into getting a passing grade. About 52 percent of Omaha Public Schools’ total spending during the 2006-2007 school year was on student instruction, according to the state Department of Education. In McCook, less than 56 percent of the tax dollars spent by the local school district went into the classroom. By Nate Jenkins.
With:
— MINOR CHANGE—Eighteen-year-olds would no longer be minors in Nebraska for certain purposes, under a bill proposed by Sen. Kent Rogert of Tekamah.
— EMBEZZLEMENT CHARGE—A Gering woman accused of embezzling more than $116,000 from the printing company where she worked will be arraigned this week.
— PHARMACEUTICAL ABUSE—A Nebraska lawmaker wants to add a muscle relaxant and a pain medication to the state’s list of controlled substances.
— BEATRICE PROBLEMS—A Nebraska lawmaker who has investigated problems at a troubled home for the developmentally challenged in Beatrice wants to spend millions to whittle down a long list of people waiting for services.
— TERM LIMITS—A Nebraska state senator wants to tinker with the state’s term limits law, letting lawmakers serve three consecutive terms instead of two.
— JUVENILE COMPACT—Nebraska could join 35 other states in a compact meant to track juveniles who run away from home or move to another state while on probation or parole.
OBIT-HENG
LINCOLN—Retired Lt. Gen. Stanley M. Heng, the former commander of the Nebraska National Guard, has died following a lengthy illness. A news release from Nebraska National Guard spokesman Lt. Col. Bob Vrana says Heng died Monday at a hospice in Lincoln. He was 71.
AP Photo AH201.
MENOPAUSAL DISMISSAL
OMAHA—A North Platte woman is suing Union Pacific Railroad, alleging she was temporarily pulled off her job as a diesel machinist and directed to undergo psychological evaluations—all because she was perceived to be menopausal. Fifty-eight-year-old Porfiria Alonzo says the Omaha-based company’s actions were discriminatory and violated rights guaranteed to her by the Americans With Disabilities Act. By Jean Ortiz.
FOREIGN WASTE
SALT LAKE CITY—Members of Congress will resubmit a bill Wednesday to ban the importation of foreign nuclear waste in an effort to preserve domestic disposal space as the U.S. increasingly looks toward expanding its use of nuclear power. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission hasn’t approved the construction of a new nuclear power plant since the late 1970s, but it is currently reviewing applications to build 26 nuclear reactors at 17 different sites throughout the country. By Brock Vergakis. Eds: Note Nebraska mention.
INAUGURATION WEATHER
WASHINGTON—”I knew it would be a cold day when I was made president,” William Howard Taft joked just a century ago, taking office in 1909 in what has been described as the worst inaugural weather ever. Ten inches of snow fell. Wind downed trees and telephone poles. Streets were clogged and trains stalled. By Randolph E. Schmid. Eds: Note Nebraska mention.
AP Photos WX101, WX102, WX103, WX104, WX105, WX106.
BUSINESS:
— TENNECO FUTURE—Owners of a Cozad plant that manufactures shock absorbers and was tapped for possible closure have decided to go in a different direction, for now.
SPORTS:
NEBRASKA-FACILITIES
LINCOLN—With plans for a new Lincoln arena now on hold, so are plans for the 33-year-old Devaney Sports Center, Nebraska athletic director Tom Osborne said. Mayor Chris Beutler announced Tuesday that the economic downturn has led the city to delay a vote on financing for an arena on the west side of downtown. By Sports Writer Eric Olson.
ALSO:
— STUDENT ATHLETES—State Sen. Kent Rogert of Tekamah is taking another crack at letting students participate in both club sports and high school sports.
— NEBRASKA ALL-STARS—Five seniors on the 2008 Nebraska football team will play in all-star games this month.
ALSO GETTING ATTENTION:
— PRISON CONTRABAND—A former Tecumseh state prison guard has been sentenced to 15 months in federal prison for smuggling tobacco and marijuana in for prisoners.
— JAIL DEATH—A second inmate has died at the new Hall County Jail since it opened in July.
— CHADRON HOMICIDE—A Rushville man accused in the stabbing death of his roommate has pleaded not guilty to the charges he faces.
— SEX ASSAULT TRIAL—A mistrial has been declared after a jury deadlocked in the case of a Roca man charged with first-degree sexual assault.
— TEACHER-SEX ASSAULT—A Sidney elementary school teacher has been charged with sexually assaulting a 16-year-old boy.
— PTO EMBEZZLEMENT—Police have reported no arrests connected to the apparent theft of more than $4,700 from a parent-teacher organization at a northeast Omaha school.
The AP, Omaha.
