- A proposal to give the state auditor more oversight of no-bid state contracts is back in committee as lawmakers consider attaching a bill allowing voters outside city limits to vote in city elections.
LINCOLN — A proposal to give the state auditor more oversight of no-bid state contracts is back in committee as lawmakers seek to reconsider whether to attach an unrelated bill that would let people outside city limits vote in city elections.
The Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee voted 5-3, along ideological lines, to pull back Legislative Bill 997, from State Sen. Bob Andersen of Sarpy County, and reconsider attaching LB 951, from State Sen. Beau Ballard of Lincoln. That effort failed 4-4 last week, with State Sen. Fred Meyer of St. Paul breaking from his four fellow Republicans.
On Wednesday, Meyer said he had studied Ballard’s bill more and understood it better. LB 951 would allow voters in “extraterritorial zoning jurisdictions” to vote in municipal elections, including for mayor and city council members…