Legislative Appropriations Chair Pressured For Relief Funds

A leading Nebraska senator who helps create the state budget says he’s already getting requests for how to spend the state’s share of federal pandemic relief money, and he’s expecting a lot more. Sen. John Stinner, chairman of the Legislature’s Appropriations Committee, says he has spoken with groups including Nebraska’s child welfare and developmental disability service providers. Stinner, of Gering, says the providers are under competitive pressure to keep workers because they aren’t able to pay as much as other employers. Stinner says he also expects pressure to spend the money on jobs programs and broadband service. His comments came at a public question-and-answer session hosted by the OpenSky Policy Institute, a Lincoln-based tax policy think tank.