Issues before the 2015 Nebraska Legislature January 22, 2015

1. Issues Before the 2015
Legislature

2. Issue Areas (Survey):
59%
69%
75%
56%
70%
38%
59%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%
Anti-Hunger Issues
Programs for Working Families
Job Training & Education
Access to High Quality ECCE
Access to Health Care
Prison Reform & Re-Entry
Affordable Housing

3. Top 5 Policies (Survey):
69%
58%
50%
50%
45%
41%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Addressing the Cliff Effect
Access to Health Care for Low-Income
Nebraskans
Eliminate Asset Limits
ACCESSNebraska Improvements
High Quality Early Childhood
Sick & Safe Leave

4. Ways to Help (Survey):
79%
45%
70%
46%
55%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%
Grassroots Advocacy
Grasstops Advocacy
Messaging & Public Education
Storybanking
Direct Legislative Advocacy

5. Legislative Speed Dating
• Who (introduced the bill & who is leading
among Coalition members)
• What (does the bill do?)
• Where (will it be heard – what committee?)
• When (will it be heard in committee? Timing?)
• Why (does it matter? How does it contribute
to a great start, the Good Life, and a better
future for all Nebraskans?)

6. Work Supports

7. Incentivizing Work Out of Poverty
– LB 81
• Who: Intro’d by Sen. Tanya Cook
• What: Raises the income level at which families “make
too much” for child care assistance – allows them to
take a raise/work more hours without losing child care
subsidy
• Where: Health and Human Services Committee
• When: No hearing date set
• Why: Currently, the child care subsidy eligibility
requirements can disincentivize accepting a raise or
working more hours because a modest increase in
earnings can result in program ineligibility. LB 81 would
change this and incentivize work for families receiving
child care assistance by addressing the “cliff effect.”

8. Increase Eligibility for SNAP – LB411
• Who: Intro’d by Sen. Tanya Cook
• What: Raises the income level at which families
can be considered for nutrition assistance (SNAP)
to 185% FPL.
• Where: Health and Human Services Committee
• When: No hearing date set
• Why: This would allow Nebraskans whose bills
make it difficult to afford food to be eligible for
SNAP. This change would allow household bills to
also be taken into consideration to determine
whether or not a family qualifies for the program

9. Increasing Basic Support in ADC &
Reducing Cliff Effect– LB89
• Who: Intro’d by Sen. Kathy Campbell
• What: Increases ADC payments and income disregards
• Where: Health and Human Services Committee
• When: No hearing date set
• Why: Effectively addressing poverty is not only
fundamental to the well-being of children and families
in our community, it is also one of the keys to
preventing the unnecessary entry of children into the
foster care system. LB 89 can help address poverty and
enable families to meet their children’s basic needs in
their own home by increasing the maximum payment
rate for families receiving ADC benefits and reduce the
cliff effect by increasing the earned income disregard.

10. Incentivize Savings – LB147
• Who: Intro’d by Sen. Sue Crawford
• What: Eliminate asset limits in SNAP & ADC
• Where: Health and Human Services Committee
• When: No hearing date set
• Why: SNAP & ADC limit eligibility to those with few or
no assets. If individuals or families have assets
exceeding the state’s limit, they must “spend down”
longer-term savings in order to receive what is often
short-term public assistance. Personal savings and
assets are precisely the kinds of resources that allow
people to move off public benefit programs. Yet, asset
limits can discourage anyone considering or receiving
public benefits from saving for the future.

11. Increase EITC – LB495
• Who: Intro’d by Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks
• What: Increases the EITC to 13% until 2017;
15% in 2017 and beyond.
• Where: Revenue Committee
• When: No hearing date set
• Why: Research shows that the EITC provides
work, income, educational and health
benefits, not only to the recipients, but also
their children as they do better in school, are
likelier to attend college and earn more as
adults.

12. Health Care

13. Prevention in Women’s Health – LB77
• Who: Intro’d by Sen. Jeremy Nordquist
• What: Provides preventive health & family
planning services to low-income and medically
underserved. Appropriates $ to the Every Woman
Matters Program and provides Medicaid family
planning services up to 185% FPL.
• Where: Health and Human Services Committee
• When: January 28th at 1:30pm, Room 1510
• Why: We can improve the health of families in
Nebraska by offering preventive health care
services (cancer screenings) and empowering
people to make healthier choices for themselves
and their families.

14. Making Health Care Make Sense –
LB472
• Who: Intro’d by Sen. Kathy Campbell
• What: Close the health care coverage gap by providing
Medicaid coverage to low-income Nebraskans
• Where: Health and Human Services Committee
• When: No hearing date set
• Why: Closing the coverage gap is good for the well-
being of our people, the productivity of our workforce,
the long-term stability of our health care providers,
and the strength of our economy. The bill gives our
Governor flexibility to redesign Medicaid in a way that
makes sense in Nebraska and works both for hospitals
and the working people who need coverage.

15. Workplace Policies

16. Tipped Minimum Wage – LB494
• Who: Intro’d by Sen. Jeremy Nordquist
• What: Increases the tipped minimum wage,
incrementally, up to 50% of the regular
minimum wage.
• Where: Business & Labor Committee
• When: No hearing date set
• Why: Tipped workers face low wages, high
poverty and great uncertainty from shift to
shift. Min. wage for tipped workers is $2.13.

17. Sick & Safe Leave – LB493
• Who: Intro’d by Sen. Jeremy Nordquist
• What: Provides earned, paid leave in the cases
of illness and domestic violence.
• Where: Business & Labor Committee
• When: No hearing date set
• Why: As low-wage jobs proliferate and wages
continue to stagnate, workers can’t afford to
lose pay or a job for being a good parent,
following doctor’s orders, or making sure their
family is safe.

18. Building a Better Future

19. Reauthorize Bridge Programs – LB227
• Who: Intro’d by Sen. Matt Hansen
• What: Provides funding for bridge programs.
• Where: Education Committee
• When: No hearing date set
• Why: Bridge programs provide education
opportunities for low-income Nebraskans
who are co-enrolled in adult education,
developmental education, or English as a
second language. Programs must target a
specific workforce need in the economy &
provide supportive services for participants.

20. DACA Licenses – LB623
• Who: Intro’d by Sen. Jeremy Nordquist
• What: Provides drivers’ licenses for Deferred
Action Childhood Arrivals young adults.
• Where: ??
• When: No hearing date set
• Why: DACA temporary residents pay income
taxes, are eligible for in-state college tuition, have
access to Social Security, can gain U.S. work
permits and, most importantly, can act without
the constant fear of deportation. In 49 states,
they can even get driver’s licenses – not
Nebraska.

21. Child Support for College – LB281
• Who: Intro’d by Sen. Rick Kolowski
• What: It allows debt forgiveness at a 2:1 ratio on child
support debt owed to the state (because of the child
receiving ADC) for deposits made into and educational
savings account in the child’s name.
• Where: Education Committee
• When: No hearing date set
• Why: Having an educational savings account has been
linked to increased ed. attainment for lower income
children. Our current tax incentives for educational
savings primarily benefit higher income families. This
model could expand the number of lower income kids
with an ed. savings account and increase the likelihood
that they will pursue higher education.

22. Improving ACCESSNebraska – LR33
• Who: Intro’d by Sen. Bob Krist
• What: Continues the ACCESSNebraska
Investigative committee
• Where: Executive Board
• When: No hearing date set

23. What Can You Do?
• Reach out to introducing senator
– Indicate your support/opposition and the reason
why.
• If you support, ask what you can do to help. Would you
like support at the hearing? Would you prefer written
or verbal testimony?
• One way to engage is to check in with
coalition members and organizations you
partner with about what their priorities are as
a way of plugging into issues that are key for
your organizations.

24. Other ways to be involved…
• There may be media around the introduction of
the bill you are interested in.
– Groups can help by speaking at a press conference or
simply coming to the press conference to show your
support.
• Stories, stories, stories!
– There is nothing more powerful than direct
experience with an issue.
– Understanding people’s experiences can really help
move good policy forward and in the right direction.

25. Preparing for the Hearing
• The hearing is an important moment to get on the record
the reasons to support (or oppose) the legislation.
• If supporting the legislation, talk with the office of the
Senator that introduced the bill to see if they are seeking
specific information or testifiers for the hearing.
– Depending on what the senator needs, organizations can help
coordinate with their coalitions and other groups on the
testimony to avoid repetition, etc.
• If you intend to oppose the legislation, you should also
contact the senator who introduced the bill to at least give
them the courtesy of letting them know you will be at the
hearing in opposition.
– You can also meet with them to talk more about your concerns
or suggest modifications to the bill

26. Nebraska Legislature Testifier Guide:
http://www.nebraskalegislature.gov/pdf/a
bout/testifierguide.pdf

27. Creating Momentum
• Organizations can help in an effort to create
momentum for (or against) a bill.
• Help engage your members or those you serve in
talking to their senators offices.
– Can do this through email action alerts, participating
in phone banks, letter writing campaigns
• Draft OpEds or Letters to the Editor to
demonstrate publicly the support or opposition
for a bill.
• Support other public efforts like rallies, vigils, etc.

28. Network & Connect – Instructions:
• On the notecards, write the following:
–Your contact information (name, org,
email)
–How you think your organization can help
• Drop off in a pile near the issue’s poster.
• These will be distributed to the introducing
senator, as well as the lead organization.
• Advocates will be around – meet them!

29. Presenters Contact Info:
• Katie Pitts, Nebraska Appleseed,
kpitts@neappleseed.org
• Aubrey Mancuso, Voices for Children,
amancuso@voicesforchildren.com
• Abbie Kretz, Heartland Workers Center,
abbie@heartlandworkerscenter.org
• Elizabeth Donner, Goodwill,
edonner@goodwillomaha.org
• Tiffany Seibert Joekel, OpenSky Policy Institute,
tjoekel@openskypolicy.org
• Jennifer Carter, Coalition for a Strong Nebraska,
jennifer@strongnebraska.org

30. Today’s Slideshow Available at:
http://www.slideshare.net/StrongNebraska