Final 2026 Legislative Update
2026 was the second year of the biennial 109th Legislature. There were over 500 carryover bills from 2025 and over 560 bills and constitutional amendments introduced in January. It was a very busy year for Jensen Rogert Associates and our clients. We tracked over 550 bills and resolutions for firm clients this year, including about 40 interim study resolutions. 2026 marks my 20th year in government and politics, as in 2006, I was running for Legislative District 16 to try my hand at being a Nebraska State Senator. This also marks my 10th year as owner of Jensen Rogert Associates. It seems that time is just flying by without caring what we’re leaving behind. I think Ron would be proud to see the work we’re doing at JRA. I know I am. I truly appreciate all of you and the relationships we’ve built and are fostering every month, session, and year. We’re going to see some changes at the firm this year, though, and we’ll be talking more about those as we move through the interim.
It’s also an election year in Nebraska with 25 of the 49 legislative seats up for election. We’ll have at least 13 new Senators on January 5th next year due to term limits and some choosing not to run for a second term. I’ll be leading a group of lobbyists and association execs through a 3-day candidate interview process in 3 sites in a couple of weeks, so we’ll see what emerges from the Primary Election next Tuesday. So, there will be lots of fundraisers and campaign events to attend this Summer and Fall, and I’ll be in touch with many of you about those.
Most of the client summaries this year were done by our fantastic intern, Tess Peterson. So, take a look and see what she has to say about your year in government and politics in Nebraska.
~Kent
Here is a summary of activities and things that passed in 2026 in one form or another for the Nebraska Dental Hygienists Association:
The 109th Legislature, 2nd Session, adjourned Sine Die on April 17th. During this session, we tracked 30 bills for the Nebraska Dental Hygienists Association. Three bills were approved by the governor, and one contained language from an additional tracked bill. LB1071 and LB1072 were both approved by the Governor in April. LB1072 addresses government funds, transfers, and appropriations for 2026. This bill contains language from LB1229. LB1071 is the biennial budget and appropriations bill for FY 25-26 and 26-27. LB958 Mandates training for Medicaid home and community-based waiver assessments. Additionally, it requires that retroactive assistance be placed at the federal maximum. The A bill associated with this bill did not advance. Quite a few bills saw movement but were not approved. LB929 was returned by the governor and failed to become law. This bill is intended for managed care organizations that participate in the Medicaid program to pay deductibles. Multiple bills were indefinitely postponed during this session. LB812 was the only new one introduced. This bill addresses new federal requirements to protect medical assistance. This includes community engagement reform and redeterminations. Additional proposals that were indefinitely postponed were LB639, LB554, LB436, LB221, LB146, and LB27. Four bills were introduced that were not advanced out of committee. LB777 and LB723 attempted to address the Medical Assistance Act by changing retroactive coverage and limited community engagement requirements. LB775 sought to establish the Rural Health Transformation Program to address rural health care delivery in Nebraska, and LB774 attempted to create the Rural Health Transformation Program Fund to manage federal funds received by the state of Nebraska. There is one resolution interim that may be taken up over the interim. LR411 is a resolution proposed to analyze the barriers that people face in accessing healthcare. This study would place an emphasis on rural areas. Overall, this session brought continued attention to healthcare funding and access in Nebraska, while several major Medicaid and rural healthcare proposals failed to advance.
~Tess