LINCOLN, Neb. (KMTV) — The Nebraska Legislature advanced two controversial bills in a day that polarized the body on ideological and geographic grounds.
They first advanced a bill that would ban an abortion method called ‘dilation and evacuation,' better known as dismemberment abortion. They passed it with 34 votes. Thirty-three votes are needed to overcome a filibuster.
They then rallied around a compromise bill that combined property tax relief. The bill adds $125 million into new property tax relief next year. It also ensures the state’s business incentive package does not expire at the end of the year.
It lowers property taxes by giving tax credits to those that pay taxes to schools, going up substantially after five years.
It also keeps the property tax credit relief fund and if casino gambling is passed, it would push that revenue to property tax relief.
The abortion bill would make Nebraska the 15th state to ban dismemberment abortion. The rarely used procedure involves a physician using forceps to take a fetus out of the womb. The bill prohibits the procedure if the fetus is alive, unless the life of the mother is at stake.
The law is not in effect in 12 of the 14 states that passed the law because courts have halted it, or struck it down altogether.
