News

Senator’s Note

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Senator Loren Lippincott • District 34 Our Nebraska Constitution requires us to end each legislative session with a balanced budget and we have done that while additionally maintaining a cash reserve (rainy day fund) of approximately ten percent. This reserve is for any unforeseen challenge our state may encounter such as the 2019 floods, the recent fires in western Nebraska, or economic downturns.
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Groundwater levels continue to decline

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Groundwater levels throughout Nebraska continued to decline in 2025 following several years of persistent drought. According to the recently released 2026 Nebraska Statewide Groundwater-Level Monitoring Report from the Conservation and Survey Division in the University of Nebraska– Lincoln’s School of Natural Resources, groundwater levels declined, on average, by 0.29 feet. With a few exceptions, however, these declines did not significantly impact drinking-water supplies or groundwater for irrigation.
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TRANSMISSION LINE

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STAKEHOLDERS GET EARLY LOOK AT Sizeable crowd attends open house for first phase Last Thursday, landowners and other community stakeholders got the chance to give feedback to the Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD) on a proposed transmission line project running from the NPPD Aurora Substation north of Aurora up to the NPPD Central City Substation near the south bank of the Platte River. With the undertaking, dubbed the Aurora– Central City Transmission Line Project, the power district is aiming to build approximately fourteen miles of 115 kilovolt (kV) transmission line to connect the two substations.
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CCHS graduates present at national conference

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Two members of the Central City High School (CCHS) Class of 2025 were given the chance to show off the results of their research on the national stage earlier this year. Caleb Rowe and Olivia Wymer, both freshmen at the University of Nebraska— Lincoln (UNL) this year, attended the American Junior Academy of Science (AJAS) national conference in Phoenix for a week in mid-February.

Candidate forum planned

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Voters in Merrick County will have an opportunity to hear directly from candidates seeking office in the May 12, 2026 Primary Election at a free, public candidate forum to be held on Sunday, April 12, 2026. The event will begin at 2:00 p.m. at The Performing Arts Center in Central City.