Opinions

Our special legislative session on property tax relief as called for by Gov. Jim Pillen is underway. According to our state constitution, only the governor may call for a special session. It says: “The Governor may, on extraordinary occasions, convene the Legislature by proclamation, stating therein the purpose for which they are convened, and the Legislature shall enter upon no business except that for which they were called together.”

I sit here on a Tuesday night in my office perhaps with writers block for the first time in my life. Most often I have articles and things of that kind wrote in my head by the time I sit down at a computer.

June of 1972 President Richard Nixon signed into the federal civil rights law Title 9 which gave young women the same access to classes and sports as young men enjoyed. Girls were allowed to take classes such as auto mechanics in school and boys could sign up for home economics classes but the legislation also opened the doors to more sports for women. For more than 50 years Title 9 seemed to be operating well until recently when the Biden Administration decided to do a rewrite of this law, bypassing Congress in the process. Once the rewrite is handed down to the states, schools’ federal funding will be at risk if they do not comply.

In recent days, I have found myself embroiled in a heated debate over the use of social media by our Sheriff’s office. Specifically, posts celebrating our Sheriff’s participation in community events, like the Merrick County Fair and a recent parade, have sparked considerable discussion. The original post reads:

The recent attempt to assassinate former President Donald Trump has brought into focus the inner workings of the U.S. Secret Service– and government agencies in general. It’s not a pretty picture. The obvious breach of security by a 20-year-old novice to come within rifle range of a U.S. presidential candidate is unthinkable! The fact that this young man could enter the perimeter of the venue toting a rifle and climb on a roof within plain sight of civilian onlookers, highlights gross incompetence in the procedures and mindset of an agency that at one time held the reputation of being our premier protective force. This fiasco also demonstrates that the agency has bowed down to the group think cowardliness of irrational thought and actions so common in this woke age.

Greetings! The chamber welcomes El Agave Mexican Restaurant as our newest member. I know most of us know them and have eaten there once upon a time.

Recently Gov. Jim Pillen has been touring the state and stopping at the homes of legislators to discuss his plan for property tax reform to be discussed in the upcoming legislative summer session. Although there will be numerous other bills introduced by senators in an attempt to bring about property tax relief, all will attempt to broaden the overall tax base in order to lighten the load on property owners.