March 6th marks one year since the first positive case of coronavirus was confirmed in Nebraska. Over the past year, it’s been an all-hands-on-deck effort to protect hospital capacity, support our healthcare workers and help keep Nebraskans healthy. We continue to see encouraging trends in our fight against the coronavirus. During the past week, the number of coronavirus-related hospitalizations has been at its lowest point in over six months. And by the latest measures, over a quarter-million Nebraskans have now received their initial dose of vaccine.

We are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel for committees to wrap up their hearings. Starting next week we will have morning debate and the afternoons are reserved for the Judiciary Committee to finish up their hearings and for other committees to have executive sessions. Committees are not only busy wrapping up hearings, but also advancing bills to the legislative floor. Currently, I have 3 bills that are on General File, the first round of debate. LB 616 which would give towers a little help when they get stuck with abandoned vehicles. The other two bills, LB 190, which would change provisions relating to the use of the Water Sustainability Fund and LB 191, which would redefine elector for the Irrigation District Act. Both were adopted by the Natural Resources Committee into one amendment and that was placed on LB 507. In the past I have talked about this procedure of including provisions of multiple bills into one bill, it is called a Christmas tree bill. Only committees can create this.

MINDEN - With a late surge, celebrated by the bench pictured above, the Southern Valley boys basketball team took down Bruning-Davenport-Shickley, 50-44, in Monday’s district final to clinch a trip back to the Class D1 State Tournament, where the Eagles were Runner-up in 2020. Details can be found on Page 16.

During the Reagan era of the 1980s, House Speaker Tip O’Neill introduced a billion-dollar jobs bill that was opposed by his House Minority leader counterpart Robert Michel. O’Neill, who is often credited with mainstreaming if not creating the phrase “All politics is local,” circumvented his Republican colleague’s objection to the measure by masterfully broadcasting a message in Michel’s hometown of Peoria, Illinois, emphasizing how the measure would create jobs and remedy infrastructure problems.

In a plea agreement with the Furnas County Attorney’s office, an Arapahoe man pleaded no contest to and was convicted of a pair of felonies the morning of February 24 in Furnas County District Court.

A McCook man was sentenced in Furnas County District Court the morning of February 24 for charges he was convicted of in November that stemmed from a sex trafficking investigation in Furnas County. Joseph H.