The Sidney Sun-Telegraph - Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper

This week we celebrate Memorial Day. Memorial Day is a day set aside as a national holiday for honoring those military personnel who died while serving our country in the U.S. Armed Forces. Memorial... Full story

May is budget month for the State of Nebraska in the Unicameral Legislature. The main budget for the year will add up to $10.7 billion. The Legislature has been busy debating four primary budget... Full story

Last week we began debating budget bills in the Nebraska State Legislature. One of those bills, LB 818, appropriates $574 million for construction of the Perkins County Canal Project. That canal... Full story

This year's legislative session has been unlike any other. Because a small group of State Senators decided to filibuster every bill, it has affected the way we do business this year at the State Capit... Full story

Last week the Nebraska State Legislature began debate on LB 562, which is the priority bill of Sen. Myron Dorn of Adams, NE. LB 562 is the Adopt the E-15 Access Standard Act. The bill requires... Full story

Last week the Nebraska State Legislature advanced LB 626, which is commonly known as the Nebraska Heartbeat Act. This bill would limit most abortions to the sixth week of pregnancy when heartbeats... Full story

Property tax relief has always been my number one priority in the State Legislature. Last Friday the State Legislature began debate on the Revenue Committee's primary property tax relief bill for... Full story

Life in the Unicameral Legislature is always full of surprises. Last week I saw things I thought I would never see. The structure of the Unicameral Legislature is such that it allows for a single... Full story

One of the bills that I co-signed this year is LB 712. LB 712 was introduced by Sen. Brian Hardin of Gering. This bill is important because it would help with the needs of the Panhandle once they add... Full story

Last week we started floor debates in the Nebraska State Legislature, and the first thing on the agenda was to confirm the governor's appointments. In the past, this process would usually take three... Full story

State agencies are supposed to work for the State of Nebraska. State Senators represent the people of Nebraska because they are elected by the people of Nebraska. So, it is inappropriate for the... Full story

By now many of you have received a postcard or two in the mail indicting me for trying to repeal term limits. Since these postcards went out in the mail, I have received numerous phone calls and...

It's hearing season at the State Capitol! Every bill that gets introduced in the Unicameral Legislature gets a public hearing. Hearings for certain committees will last through the month of March....

This year I was elected chair of the Rules Committee. At the beginning of each biennial session of the Nebraska Legislature new rule changes get proposed by State Senators and so it becomes the job...

The 108th Legislature has begun. The legislative session began on January 4 and will extend through the month of May. This will be the longer 90-day session. The reason for the longer session has to...

One of the bills I will introduce in 2023 is a bill to move the headquarters for the Game and Parks Commission to Sidney. I believe moving the headquarters to Sidney would be advantageous for Western... Full story

One of the bills that I will introduce next year is a bill to put posters displaying our national motto, "In God We Trust" in all of Nebraska's public schools just like we have in all of our...

One of the bills I will introduce in January will affect the way properties get valuated once an appeal has been filed with the Tax Equalization and Review Commission. The current process is a mess an... Full story

Some of you can still remember the old television detective show, Dragnet. Sgt. Joe Friday's most famous line on that TV show was, "just the facts ma'am!" The implication of that statement was that... Full story

Abraham Lincoln once said about elections that “It is the people’s business – the election is in their hands. If they turn their backs to the fire, and get scorched in the rear, they’ll find...

The new ACT scores for the class of 2022 were released last week and the scores do not look good for Nebraska. Nebraska’s composite score fell to 19.4, which is below the national average of 19.8....

The general election will be held on November 8. Please make it a point to vote. As the election date nears, the matter of election integrity is once again taking center stage. Election integrity has...

All of the signs are indicating that the U.S. economy is entering into a long-term recession. Last Wednesday the Federal Reserve raised the key interest rate by three quarters of a point and raised...

A new political action group has been formed in our state known as Nebraska First. As you may have guessed, the name closely resembles former president Donald Trump’s political slogan, Make America...

Two weeks ago, I addressed the reset at the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) due to their failure to adequately guide the American public through the COVID-19 outbreak, and last week I...