The Nebraska Supreme Court has ruled that people who have completed their felony sentences may register to vote.
In that court opinion on Wednesday, the justices stated the Secretary of State’s Office must move forward with new registrations immediately in compliance with a law passed by legislature earlier this year. Two justices dissented, citing concerns about the law's constitutionality.
The court took up the case in August.
Its decision comes two days before the deadline to register online or by mail to vote, which is Friday Oct. 18. The deadline to register in person at an election office is Oct. 25.
*In other voting news, early voting in Iowa began on Wednesday. There was a big turnout in Woodbury County as the day began, according to Auditor Pat Gill.
He said election workers at the two voting sites cited “a steady stream of voters since opening this morning.” By the end of the day, there were just more than 1,000 votes cast in Woodbury County.
Registered voters can go to their county auditor’s office or any satellite location, fill out a form, and then get their ballot and vote in person.
Iowa county auditors also on Wednesday will begin mailing out absentee ballots to people who have requested them. Those ballots must be received in county auditor offices by the evening of Election Day, which is November 5.
*Also in Nebraska, two Native-related organizations on Wednesday received large financial awards from a federal source.
Former Iowa Congresswoman Cindy Axne, who now is a senior adviser for the U.S. Department of Agriculture division of Rural Development, announced the awards as she made two stops in Northeast Nebraska.
The first was to deliver $1.65 million in Native American grants at the Dr. Susan LaFlesche Picotte Center in Walthill, Nebraska. The second was announcing $1.55 million in Community Facility grants at the Nebraska Indian Community College, in Macy.
*Additionally, the Iowa Judicial Branch has improperly distributed more than $53 million of collected court debts since 2021, because of an information technology error.
Iowa House Speaker Pat Grassley and Iowa Department of Management Director Kraig Paulsen said Wednesday that they have written letters to State Auditor Rob Sand, urging him to investigate court debt collections.
Paulsen says he recently learned from court officials that an IT error caused about $26 million of overpayments, and $26 million of underpayments to state funds for crime victim assistance, highway repairs, and more.
The letters don’t say what the money was used for if it didn’t go to the proper funds. A judicial branch official said they would respond to questions “as soon as possible.”
*Additionally, the city of Sioux City a few weeks ago approved $150,000 to financially help The Warming Shelter.
But it appears two other governmental entities in the metro will not also provide money to the agency that gives temporary housing to unhoused people.
The Warming Shelter in early 2024 ran into financial difficulties, and in early September the board members announced that their housing services would close down. But a last ditch fundraising effort, plus the city funding gave the shelter a reprieve, so officials reversed course and said it would stay open.
Now, as other governmental entities are asked to also potentially provide funding, on two fronts the answer appears to be “no.”
The Woodbury County Board of Supervisors in a Tuesday meeting declined to vote on a request from the Warming Shelter of at least $25,000.
For many years, the county had donated to some select non-profit agencies. But that changed about 10 years ago, the county supervisors told Executive Director Shayla Moore.
Additionally, at the Monday meeting of the South Sioux City Council, they heard a report on The Warming Shelter from Bob Sheehan.
South Sioux City Council members debated the merits of giving some city money to The Warming Shelter. City Manager Lance Hedquist on Wednesday told Siouxland Public Media News that more research will go into that possibility, but it looks like a state law may not allow such a donation to a non-profit such as The Warming Shelter.
