LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - Conservative Republicans claimed nearly all of the Nebraska Legislature’s leadership positions on Wednesday and tried to force through a change that could have made it harder for Democrats to win committee chairmanships in the future.
The move drew a heated rebuke from some left-leaning senators on the session’s first day and signaled that the Legislature may tilt further to the right for the next two years.
Despite GOP dominance in the ostensibly nonpartisan Legislature, committees have traditionally been led by a mix of Republicans and Democrats. But on Wednesday, only one Democrat won a standing committee chairmanship - and he did so by defeating another Democrat who already held the position.
Democrats and moderate Republicans have been able to win committee chairmanships in part because lawmakers use secret ballots to elect committee leaders, which lets some GOP senators break ranks without fear of reprisal. Some conservative lawmakers argue that the process isn’t transparent, but supporters say it reduces partisan pressure on senators and allows them to maintain working relationships.
Senators rejected an effort by Sen. John Kuehn of Heartwell to require an open vote for chairman of the Rules Committee, a key technical post. Kuehn argued that the secret vote violates the state constitution.
Democrats railed against the move as an attempt to inject partisanship into a Legislature with no official party labels.
“I see this effort as a threat to history and tradition,” said Sen. Kate Bolz of Lincoln. “It is a threat to the way we do business in Nebraska, which is rooted in the idea of populism.”
Sen. Ernie Chambers, a left-leaning independent, predicted that the coalition which allowed conservatives to win most of the chairmanships would eventually fall apart. Chambers said the attempt to require a public vote on the Rules Committee chairman would “poison” the rest of the session.
“You know this is not done in advancing the integrity, the dignity of the legislature,” said Chambers, the longest-serving senator in state history. “This is undermining and undercutting it for the sake of a political party.”
Committee chairs oversee public hearings on legislation and control the order in which bills are reviewed, which in some cases can determine whether a measure advances to the floor. They also can decide whether or not to allow second votes on measures that a committee has already rejected.
All but two of the 14 standing committee chairs elected were Republicans. The exceptions were Sen. Laura Ebke of Crete, a former Republican turned Libertarian, for the Judiciary Committee; and Sen. Justin Wayne of Omaha, a Democrat, for the Urban Affairs Committee. Wayne defeated Sen. Sue Crawford of Bellevue, a fellow Democrat who had chaired the committee.
The votes came on the traditionally ceremonial first day of the 90-day session with 17 newly elected members. Senators selected Sen. Jim Scheer of Norfolk as their next speaker to replace former Sen. Galen Hadley of Kearney, who left office because office term limits. Scheer defeated fellow Republican Sen. Matt Williams of Gothenburg for the post.
“Everyone I work with, without question, will always receive fair treatment,” Scheer said in his nominating speech to lawmakers.
Williams presented himself as a leader who would work to unite the Legislature.
“As your speaker, I will work to build and find those commonalities and not let our differences wedge us apart,” he said.
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The lawmakers selected for committee chairmanships were:
Sen. Lydia Brasch of Bancroft for Agriculture Committee
Sen. John Stinner of Gering for Appropriations Committee
Sen. Brett Lindstrom of Omaha for Banking, Insurance and Commerce Committee
Sen. Joni Albrecht of Thurston for Business and Labor Committee
Sen. Mike Groene of North Platte for Education Committee
Sen. Tyson Larson of O’Neill for General Affairs Committee.
Sen. John Murante of Gretna for Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee
Sen. Merv Riepe of Omaha for Health and Human Services Committee
Sen. Laura Ebke of Crete for Judiciary Committee
Sen. Dan Hughes of Venango for Natural Resources Committee
Sen. Mark Kolterman of Seward for Nebraska Retirement Systems Committee
Sen. Jim Smith of Papillion for Revenue Committee
Sen. Curt Friesen of Henderson for Transportation and Telecommunications Committee
Sen. Justin Wayne for Urban Affairs Committee
Sen. Mike Hilgers of Lincoln for Rules Committee
Sen. Dan Watermeier of Syracuse for Executive Board
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