Election law bill advanced without changes to municipal elections
Lawmakers gave second-round approval April 7 to an omnibus election bill after an effort to amend it to expand voting district boundaries in certain municipal elections was withdrawn.
LB1075, sponsored by Sen. Rita Sanders of Bellevue, would make a number of changes to laws relating to election provisions requested by the Nebraska secretary of state. It was amended on the first round to include provisions of five additional bills.
Select file debate focused on an amendment filed by Lincoln Sen. Beau Ballard that would add to the underlying bill the amended provisions of his LB951 regarding extraterritorial zoning jurisdictions and voting in municipal elections.
An ETJ is the area adjacent to a municipality within which cities may apply zoning and building codes and other regulations that impact land use and development. In Nebraska, the area is three miles outside the city limits for metropolitan and primary class cities, two miles for first class cities and one mile for second class cities and villages.
LB951, as originally introduced, would require ETJs to be included in the district boundaries for municipal elections beginning Jan. 1, 2027. Ballard’s amendment instead would limit the measure to primary class cities. Lincoln is the state’s only primary class city.
Ballard said concerns about “overburdensome” zoning regulations were what spurred his interest in public policy and that the issue was the catalyst for his involvement in politics.
“It is legitimately because I believe that this is taxation without representation,” he said.
Sen. Carolyn Bosn of Lincoln supported the proposal, which she said is an issue in her legislative district as well. She said homeowners in areas that were not in an ETJ when built often must pay fees to make modifications to their homes when municipalities expand.
Sen. George Dungan of Lincoln opposed the proposal and filed a series of amendments and motions in an attempt to delay its consideration. He characterized the Ballard amendment as an “extreme and unprecedented” response to the frustration of those living in ETJs that would swing the balance of power too far in their direction.
Under Ballard’s proposal, ETJ residents — who do not pay city taxes — would have a voice in a “huge number” of matters that don’t apply to them, Dungan said, including police and firefighter contracts and city budgets. He said there are other ways to address ETJ residents’ frustrations, including possibly expanding their representation on planning commissions, which would not “totally upend” the way city elections are handled.
Sen. John Cavanaugh of Omaha agreed, calling the proposal “a sledgehammer when a flyswatter is needed.”
Ballard withdrew his amendment, saying he hoped to work with senators over the interim to address the concerns of Nebraskans who live in areas where they are subject to regulation but lack a voice in the regulation process.
After rejecting an amendment from Lincoln Sen. Jane Raybould that would expand current prohibitions on candidate committee expenditures, lawmakers adopted the divided components of a cleanup amendment from Sanders and advanced LB1075 to final reading by voice vote.
