Plan for pandemic funds advanced, with more money for mental health, health care workforce

LINCOLN — Nebraska lawmakers managed to squeeze extra initiatives and initiatives into the state’s $1.04 billion of federal pandemic restoration funds Wednesday.

Over the course of the day, senators adopted six amendments to Legislative Invoice 1014 earlier than giving the invoice first-round approval on a 41-1 vote. The measure allocates cash coming to the state by the American Rescue Plan Act.

Among the many adjustments, State Sen. John Arch of La Vista managed to get $20 million added for a plan geared toward increasing psychological well being providers and constructing new therapy services. The addition would carry the plan whole as much as $40 million.

He argued that Nebraska has a important want for extra behavioral well being providers to maintain individuals wholesome, employed and out of jail and that the pandemic exacerbated psychological well being issues, particularly for youth.

The plan includes constructing an inpatient psychological well being facility for youth within the Omaha space, constructing or renovating faculties serving troubled youth, growing pediatric psychological well being pressing care facilities in Omaha and Kearney and increasing providers offered by Group Alliance in Omaha.

Senators additionally accredited a plan to allocate $5 million to assist rural well being care suppliers repay school loans and $5 million to offer scholarships for nursing college students. Sen. Dave Murman of Glenvil pushed for the cash, which is geared toward serving to ease the scarcity of well being care professionals.

Nebraska hospital and medical associations had urged help for each packages to assist strengthen the well being care workforce, which has suffered losses through the pandemic. 

Sen. Justin Wayne of Omaha satisfied colleagues to direct $150 million to North and South Omaha for enterprise improvement, neighborhood and cultural restoration, job coaching and different wants. 

His modification didn’t change the quantity allotted by the Appropriations Committee for such makes use of. However the committee plan known as for $50 million of the whole to be obtainable to certified census tracts anyplace within the state.

Certified census tracts are areas with a excessive focus of low-income residents. Half of Nebraska’s certified census tracts are in North and east Omaha, however there are some in a number of communities.

Wayne, who had labored with Omaha Sen. Terrell McKinney on a $450 million plan to rework North Omaha, argued that there had not been any plans put forth on behalf of different elements of the state and there had been no testimony about what their wants could be. 

Lawmakers additionally nixed some amendments supplied Wednesday. 

Sen. Joni Albrecht of Thurston proposed to place $60 million into training restoration grants for low-income college students. The $2,000 grants may very well be used for personal faculty tuition, tutoring, digital studying subscriptions, residence faculty curriculum and different Ok-12 instructional providers.

The concept had been a part of Gov. Pete Ricketts’ plan for the ARPA funds however was not included within the Appropriations Committee bundle.

Albrecht wound up withdrawing her modification after working into opposition over her proposal to take the cash from nursing houses and developmental incapacity suppliers.

Lawmakers additionally rejected a plan to allocate $20 million to help lecturers. The modification, launched by Sen. Carol Blood of Bellevue, acquired solely 11 sure votes, with 17 senators opting to not vote in any respect. 

Blood’s plan would have distributed the $20 million throughout Nebraska’s public faculty districts for the needs of faculty worker retention. One other invoice the Legislature is contemplating would incentivize new lecturers to affix the occupation, however Blood mentioned her modification would help lecturers working at the moment. 

“They’re sick and drained,” Blood mentioned. “They usually do not assume they’re being heard.”

The primary downside senators had with Blood’s plan was that it could take cash away from a sewer venture on the state truthful grounds in Grand Island. Nevertheless, Blood mentioned that venture might nonetheless occur if the Legislature used cash from the state’s normal fund. 

Speaker of the Legislature Mike Hilgers required senators proposing amendments to spell out what venture they would scale back or eradicate to pay for his or her thought. The pay-for requirement was vital as a result of the Appropriations Committee bundle allotted almost $1.03 billion of the $1.04 billion whole. 

The committee bundle included cash for 37 initiatives and initiatives. Amongst them: changing getting old rural ambulances, boosting well being and human providers supplier fee charges, repairing wastewater programs in state parks, and funding nonprofit building initiatives that had been interrupted by the pandemic.

Others embrace: growing rural and concrete low-income housing, updating a local weather change research, constructing a rural well being advanced on the College of Nebraska at Kearney, and repairing an irrigation canal that runs from Fort Laramie, Wyoming, to Gering.