Familiar Faces Testify For and Against LB 1375

By Gordon Hopkins Over the last few years, members of the public have been heavily involved in a number of planning and zoning projects under consideration in Jefferson and Gage counties. Meeting places where discussions of the placement of wind turbines and CAFOs (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations) have seen full houses, as members of the public were eager to let county officials know not just their positions but the numbers of people who were for or against proposed projects.A bill currently under consideration in the legislature could change that.LB (Legislative Bill) 1375 was introduced by Senator John Lowe, District 37, at the behest of Governor Jim Pillen.On Wednesday, February 7, 2024, testimony both for and against was heard by the legislature's Government Military and Veterans Affairs Committee in a hearing that lasted over three hours.Among the supporters of the bill was Governor Pillen, himself, who explained the reason for the bill, “The goal of this bill is really simple. It's to smooth out the process of obtaining a proper permit to do business at the county level. You'll hear from several testifiers today who have struggled to get permits.”The governor said, “I believe we should not be stifling economic growth by cumbersome county's zoning process. Further, we need to encourage our local leaders to make decisions based on objective zoning requirements not subjective fears.”One of the controversial elements of the bill is that it would no longer require planning and zoning committees to hold public hearings.Pillen emphasized that the bill does not prohibit public hearings but gives committees the option to accept written statements instead, “I want to thank Senator Lowe for carrying this bill and I think that I can't overstate the last piece of his testimony, where he talked about it gives the counties the option to have testimony in a written form instead of verbal.”Pillen added, “I think it's incredibly challenging within our communities when emotions run high and people are coming forward and giving testimony and the most disappointing part is, if somebody makes a comment about a neighbor in a public setting, emotionally charged, the chances of ever apologizing are pretty well slim to none. And then it just creates extraordinary ravines between neighbors within our rural communities source part of county zoning.”Also speaking in support of the bill at the meeting was Dean Otto, who talked about his recent experience in attempting to get a permit for two CAFOs in Gage County, “Our goal was to build two swine finishing sites in Gage County, where we have sufficient acreage to buy manure. Both sites I bought in Gage County met setbacks and requirements established by the county. These projects should have been a slam dunk. They were not.”“Where we were really belittled, degraded and attacked,” said Otto, describing the hearings. “Both sides kept getting more tense. They even had law enforcement there most meetings.”Speaking in opposition to the bill was Jefferson County Commissioner Mark Schoenrock, “It is of vital importance that our citizens have every opportunity to participate in the process of government, at every level in every step. As the North Portico of our capitol read, 'The salvation of the state is watchfulness of the citizen.' (A quote from Hartley Burr Alexander.) This is especially important in Jefferson County, where over the recent past, we have held numerous public forums regarding our zoning regulations pertaining to commercial wind energy systems and confined animal feeding operations. These are controversial subjects, yes. And its of vital importance that our citizens have the opportunity to voice their views. Whatever government decides needs to reflect the will of the people. If the public input is curtailed to reflect only written public comment, that is bad public policy.”“If we do this, restricting the opportunity for the public to come and voice their view in these hearings, that does not make the process transparent,” said Schoenrock. “You know, I speak firsthand, some of these hearings can get to be very emotional. But that has to be out in the public forum, not in written comment.”Schoenrock objected to another aspect of the bill, “The bill calls for a maximum of 90 days for the county board to decide on conditional use permits of special exceptions. This also is bad public policy as well, because the process could take much longer for the county or the local governing board to ensure that it has all the necessary facts.”Finally, Schoenrock concluded, “We and the Nebraska Association of County Officials (NACO) would be very willing to work with Senator Lowe to make some additions to this bill. But as it's currently written, we definitely stand in opposition to this bill. He has bad public policy for Nebraska.” Another face familiar to some Jefferson County residents was Scott Gropp, public defender. He was also attorney for Jefferson County Wind Watchers, a group opposed to wind energy expansion in Jefferson County and who showed up at a great many hearings to voice their opposition. Gropp was blunt in his assessment, “I would tell you that I'm here in opposition of LB 1375, specifically the elimination of public hearings, and let's be honest. It's my belief as a cynic and probably a defense attorney most of the time that the actual intent of this was to eliminate public hearing. We have found a creative way after the backlash to make it look like that wasn't the intent, but I believe that actually was the intent.”Gropp said, “And I think one of the scariest thoughts is that if we eliminate the public hearing requirement, it's like asking my children to do the dishes versus requiring them to do the dishes. It's not going to happen unless it's required.”

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