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Sen. Lou Ann Linehan of Elkhorn, who has championed school choice efforts in Nebraska, was able to secure 33 votes to invoke cloture and advance her priority bill (LB1402) just before 8:45 p.m. on Day 57 of the 60-day legislative session.

The bill, which caps the amount of appropriations given to private school scholarships, later advanced to the second round of debate on a 31-12 vote.

Linehan said the Legislature had made significant investments in Nebraska’s public school system last year, including the $1 billion Education Future Fund, supporting special education, and other efforts, and asked her colleagues to invest what she called "a rounding error" for families who opt to send their children elsewhere.

One thousand students have already applied for an Opportunity Scholarship under an existing program (LB753) that gives tax credits to donors to private school scholarship funds. Linehan said that number is expected to jump to 2,500 later this year.

"I believe if we get these 2,500 students into a school that works for them, you'll be hard pressed whether I'm here or not to kick those kids out of those schools," Linehan said.

Linehan's original bill sought $25 million in state appropriations for scholarships that aid qualifying students to attend private schools across the state, equaling the amount set aside in tax credits passed last year.

That measure was the focus of a referendum led by Support Our Schools Nebraska, which submitted more than 117,000 signatures during a petition drive last summer, more than enough to qualify for the November 2024 general election.

Secretary of State Bob Evnen’s office verified 91,861 signatures – well over the 61,308 needed – and certified the referendum to go before voters this fall.

Opponents to LB1402, which as amended included a provision ending the Opportunity Scholarships program at the end of the year, blasted it as an attempt by Linehan and others to circumvent the will of the voters.

“The voters deserve an opportunity to be heard,� said Omaha Sen. John Cavanaugh, who added the Legislature was injecting itself between the petition process – which is the first right granted to the people of Nebraska under the state constitution – and the election.

Other senators, including Lincoln Sen. George Dungan, said appropriating state tax dollars to benefit private schools likely ran afoul of the state constitution unlike LB753, which provided a tax credit for donations to private school scholarship programs.

While court decisions have found some programs where public money help private institutions incidentally – busing, book exchanges, or postsecondary scholarships – constitutional, Dungan said LB1402 did not fit that mold.

“Where that is different in LB1402 is that when you receive this scholarship, you are applying for it for the purpose of using it purely for a private institution,� Dungan said.

Sen. Dave Murman of Glenvil, the Education Committee chairman, said the Legislature’s support for LB1402 did not detract from Nebraska’s public schools, but rather put parents “back in charge.�

He said the state should support students whether they attend public schools, private schools, or are homeschooled.

“A system with no school choice makes it difficult to care for every single family,� Murman said.

Tuesday’s debate also swerved into some political maneuvering as backers of the bill attempted to evade a filibuster in order to bring an amendment to the floor for a vote.

Linehan, keeping with a practice that started last year, filed procedural motions to her own bill in an attempt to prevent opponents from running out the clock before changes could be made to the bill.

But when she attempted to withdraw those motions, a handful of senators used a new rule adopted this year and objected, allowing them to continue speaking and eating up the clock.

Eventually, with advantageous positions in the speaking queue, supporters of LB1402 began calling the question – sometimes in quick succession – in order to dispense with the procedural motions and take up the substantive amendments.

As the debate reached four hours, the time limit set by Speaker John Arch, Linehan won support for amendments reducing the appropriation from $25 million to $10 million and removing an “escalator,� which keeps spending on the program flat until future lawmakers change it.

Following the vote, members of Support Our Schools Nebraska called the vote by lawmakers “a slap in the face to the 117,415 Nebraskans who signed� the petition last year.

OpenSky Policy Institute, a left-leaning think tank, said the referendum garnered the support of Nebraskans who expected to vote on it this fall.

“They should have their opportunity to weigh in before any changes are made,� said Executive Director Rebecca Firestone.

Jenni Benson, president of the Nebraska School Educators Association, said Support Our Schools Nebraska “will continue the fight to ensure voters’ wishes on this issue are heard and respected.�

“That can include another petition effort and a legal challenge to the constitutionality of this bill,� Benson said.

But the right-leaning Platte Institute applauded lawmakers for advancing LB1402, which it called “a monumental shift away from the outdated, one-size-fits-all approach to education.�

“Every child is unique, with distinct needs, talents, and dreams,� said Jim Vokal, the Platte Institute’s CEO. “This legislation acknowledges that reality by empowering parents with the freedom to choose educational environments that best fit their child’s individuality.�

LB1402 will appear back on the Legislature's agenda on Wednesday for the second round of debate.

If it advances again, it would come up for the third and final round of consideration on Day 60, which is scheduled for April 18.