Nebraska universities would be able to pay athletes name, image and likeness compensation directly under a bill heard Monday afternoon in a legislative committee. Last year, former college athletes brought a case against the NCAA claiming that it unfairly restricted them from profiting from NIL. The NCAA agreed to a nearly $3 billion settlement, allowing universities to pay current and former athletes the money they may have missed out on. But current Nebraska law prohibits universities from directly paying NIL compensation to athletes.

The Legislature’s Revenue Committee considered proposals to end taxes on tips and overtime pay. During a hearing Friday afternoon, Sen. Danielle Conrad said she introduced the bills to show her support for working families. She acknowledged opposition to the policies from both left and right-leaning think tanks, but she said the policies have majority support from both parties according to polling.

Under a bill from Sen. Merv Riepe, juveniles could be detained as young as 11 years old and charged as an adult as young as 12. That’s two years younger than current law allows. The bill also expands the list of crimes that make juveniles eligible for detention. Riepe said he introduced the bill to protect youth and promote community safety.

A constitutional amendment to end inheritance taxes in Nebraska was discussed in the Legislature Wednesday afternoon. Nebraska is one of five states that has inheritance taxes, and the only state where it is collected exclusively at the county level. Sen. Bob Hallstrom, who introduced the amendment, said the change would help the state be more competitive.

The U.S. Department of Education announced mass layoffs on Tuesday, cutting almost half of the department’s employees. Nebraska State Education Association officials even if they aren’t immediate, changes at the federal level can trickle down to the state education system.

A bill that would allocate funding for cybersecurity protections in schools was discussed in The Nebraska Legislature’s Education Committee Tuesday. The bill — known as the HACKER Act — would also create a state cybersecurity team.

Nebraska could rejoin the Midwest Interstate Passenger Rail Compact under a bill discussed in the Legislature. The compact is made up of appointed government officials from eight member states that advocate for passenger rail projects and funding. Nebraska first joined the group in 2001 but left in 2018 due to concerns with the cost of membership and limited returns.

A group of Elkhorn residents are hoping to start an orchestra program in the local school district. They plan to speak to the Elkhorn Public Schools Board of Education Monday night.

The Nebraska Department of Education provided an update at Friday's State Board of Education meeting that national conversations have not yet impacted the state education department. NDE Commissioner Brian Maher also spoke about the state of mental health training funds that failed to be approved last month.

Where parents can surrender their infants without facing legal consequences would expand under a bill heard at the Nebraska Legislature Thursday. Currently, the Nebraska Safe Haven Law allows parents to drop off infants younger than 90 days old to staff at any hospital, fire station or police station monitored 24 hours a day.