The Nebraska Legislature (also called the Unicameral) is the legislature of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln. With 49 members, known as "senators", the Nebraska Legislature is the smallest U.S. state legislature. A total of 25 members is required for a majority; however, in order to overcome a filibuster, a two-thirds vote of all members is required, which takes 33 votes.
Unlike the legislatures of the other 49 U.S. states and the U.S. Congress, the Nebraska Legislature is unicameral, a structure the state adopted in 1937. It is also nonpartisan in that members are elected in nonpartisan elections, and the Legislature does not officially recognize its members' political party affiliation or maintain a formal partisan leadership structure. All 49 members elect, by secret ballot, the Legislature's officers (except the lieutenant governor, who serves as President of the Legislature) and committee chairs with the aim of ensuring lawmakers select leaders they truly support without undue pressure or influence from other branches of government, the political parties, or other sources of outside influence.
History
The First Nebraska Territorial Legislature met in Omaha in 1855, staying there until statehood was granted in 1867., Nebraska State Historical Society. Retrieved 12/14/08. Nebraska originally operated under a bicameral legislature, but over time dissatisfaction with the bicameral system grew. Bills were lost because the two houses could not agree on a single version. Conference committees that formed to merge the two bills coming out of each chamber often met in secret, and thus were unaccountable for their actions. Campaigns to consolidate the Nebraska Legislature into a single chamber date back as early as 1913, meeting with mixed success.
After a trip to Australia in 1931, George W. Norris, then U.S. senator for Nebraska, campaigned for reform, arguing that the bicameral system was based on the non-democratic British House of Lords, and that it was pointless to have two bodies of people doing the same thing and hence wasting money. He specifically pointed to the example of the Australian state of Queensland, which had adopted a unicameral parliament nearly ten years before. In 1934, voters approved a constitutional amendment to take effect with the 1936 elections, abolishing the Nebraska Senate and the Nebraska House of Representatives and granting their powers to a new unicameral body simply called the Nebraska Legislature. At 43 members, the new Nebraska Legislature was closer in size to the old 33-member Nebraska Senate than it was to the old 100-member Nebraska House of Representatives.
Many possible reasons for the 1934 amendment's victory have been advanced: the popularity of George Norris; the Depression-era desire to cut costs; public dissatisfaction with the previous year's legislature; or even the fact that, by chance, it was on the ballot in the same year as an amendment to legalize parimutuel betting on horse races. This final coincidence may have aided the measure's passage in Omaha, where the unicameral issue was not a pressing one but horse racing was. (Gambling interests campaigned for "yes" votes on all amendments in hopes of assuring the horse-racing amendment's passage.)
The new unicameral Legislature met for the first time in 1937. Though the name of the body is formally the "Nebraska Legislature", during the first session the Legislature adopted a resolution formally giving members the title of "senator". In Nebraska, the Legislature is also often known as "the Unicameral."
General powers The Legislature is responsible for law-making and appropriating funds for the state. The governor has the power to veto any bill, but the Legislature may override the governor's veto by a vote of three-fifths (30) of its members. The Legislature also has the power, by a three-fifths vote, to propose a constitutional amendment to the voters, who then pass or reject it through a referendum.
Selection, composition and operation The Legislature is composed of 49 members, chosen by a single-member district or constituency. Senators are chosen for four-year terms, with one-half of the seats up for election every second year. In effect, this results in half the chamber being elected at the same time as the President of the United States, and the other half elected at the same time as other statewide elections. Senators must be qualified voters who are at least 21 years old and have lived in the district they wish to represent for at least one year. A constitutional amendment passed in 2000 limits senators to two consecutive terms. However, a former senator is re-eligible for election after four years."Frequently Asked Questions About Senators". Nebraska Legislature. Retrieved May 27, 2015. Archived 2 April 2015 at Wayback Machine. Senators receive $12,000 a year + per diem.
Rather than separate primary elections held to choose Republican, Democratic, and other partisan contenders for a seat, Nebraska uses a single nonpartisan blanket primary, in which the top two vote-getters are entitled to run in the general election. There are no formal party alignments or groups within the Legislature. Coalitions tend to form issue by issue based on a member's philosophy of government, geographic background, and constituency. However, almost all the members of the legislature are known to be either Democrats or Republicans, and the state branches of both parties explicitly endorse candidates for legislative seats.See, e.g., lists of endorsed candidates for the Legislature on the webpages of both the Nebraska Democratic Party and the Nebraska Republican Party .
Vacancies Vacancies in the Legislature are filled by the governor.
Length of session Nebraska has a legislative session every year, but is set up with a biennium system. Regular sessions of the Nebraska Legislature last for a maximum 90 working days in odd-numbered years and short sessions last 60 working days in even-numbered years.
Both sessions start after the first Monday in January with regular sessions lasting until sometime in mid-June and short sessions going until about mid-April.
With a biennium system set up, bills that do not make it to floor debate during a short session can carry over to the regular session and continue through the legislative process. Bills introduced in a regular session do not carry over.
Special sessions Article IV-8 of the Nebraska State Constitution gives the governor the power to call special sessions on "extraordinary occasions." When called, lawmakers may only consider legislation outlined in the governor's proclamation.
Membership
AffiliationParty(Shading indicates majority caucus)TotalVacantRepublicanIndependentDemocraticStart of 109th Legislature33115490January 13, 2026 32115481January 14, 202633115490Latest voting share
The Nebraska Legislature officially recognizes no party affiliations; affiliations listed are based on state party endorsements. , 33 members are Republicans, 15 are Democrats, and one is a registered Independent.
DistrictNamePartyResidenceStartNext Election1RepublicanSyracuse20282RepublicanElmwood2026 (term limited)3DemocraticBellevue20284RepublicanElkhorn20265DemocraticOmaha20286DemocraticOmaha2026 (term limited)7DemocraticOmaha20288IndependentOmaha2026 (term limited)9DemocraticOmaha2028 (term limited)10DemocraticBennington2026 (term limited)11DemocraticOmaha2028 (term limited)12RepublicanRalston202613DemocraticOmaha202814RepublicanLaVista2026 (term limited)15RepublicanFremont202816RepublicanBlair2026 (term limited)17RepublicanPender202818RepublicanOmaha202619RepublicanNorfolk202820DemocraticOmaha202621RepublicanLincoln202822RepublicanColumbus2026 (term limited)23RepublicanDavid City202824RepublicanSeward202625RepublicanLincoln202826DemocraticLincoln202627DemocraticLincoln202828DemocraticLincoln202629DemocraticLincoln2028 (term limited)30RepublicanAdams2026 (term limited)31RepublicanOmaha202832RepublicanPlymouth2026 (term limited)33RepublicanHastings202834RepublicanCentral City202635DemocraticGrand Island202836RepublicanBellevue202637RepublicanKearney202838RepublicanGlenvil2026 (term limited)39RepublicanElkhorn202840RepublicanNiobrara202641RepublicanSt. Paul202842RepublicanNorth Platte202643RepublicanWhitman202844RepublicanSumner202645RepublicanBellevue2028 (term limited)46DemocraticLincoln202647RepublicanSidney202848RepublicanGering202649RepublicanOmaha2028
Leadership Lieutenant governor The Lieutenant Governor is the President of the Legislature and the official presiding officer. When presiding, the Lieutenant Governor may vote to break a tie in the Legislature, but may not break a tie when the vote is on the final passage of a bill.
Speaker The highest position among the members is the Speaker, who presides over the Legislature in the absence of the Lieutenant Governor. The current Speaker of the Nebraska Legislature is John Arch. The Speaker is elected by floor ballot (or secret ballot) for a two-year term. The Speaker, with the approval of the executive board, determines the agenda (or the order in which bills and resolutions are considered). The Speaker is not a member of any committee, but is an ex-officio member of the Rules Committee and the executive board.
Executive board Administrative matters of the body are dealt with by the executive board. The Board includes the Speaker, a chairperson, a vice chairperson, and six other members. The chair and vice chair are chosen by floor ballot (or secret ballot) for two-year terms by the entire legislature. The chair of the Appropriations Committee serves, but cannot vote on any matter, and can only speak on fiscal matters.
The executive board is also the Referencing Committee. All bills introduced are referenced by the Referencing Committee to the committee whose subject relates to the bill. Any member of the Legislature may object to where a bill was referenced and attempt re-refer the bill to a different committee with a majority vote of the Legislature.
Caucuses The Nebraska Legislature does not caucus based on political affiliation or use caucuses to organize support or opposition to legislation. Senators are classified into three geographically based caucuses based on the three congressional districts in the state. Each caucus elects two board members who serve on the executive board and four members who serve on the Committee on Committees.
Legislative committees Committee Chair Members RankStanding committeesAgricultureBarry DeKay8 Members10AppropriationsRobert Clements9 Members5Banking, Commerce and InsuranceMike Jacobson8 Members8Business and LaborKathleen Kauth7 Members14EducationDave Murman8 Members7General AffairsRick Holdcroft8 Members12Government, Military and Veterans AffairsRita Sanders8 Members4Health and Human ServicesBrian Hardin7 Members11JudiciaryCarolyn Bosn8 Members3Natural ResourcesTom Brandt8 Members9Nebraska Retirement SystemsBeau Ballard6 Members -RevenueBrad von Gillern8 Members6Transportation and TelecommunicationsMike Moser8 Members15Urban AffairsTerrell McKinney7 Members13Select committeesCommittee on CommitteesChristy Armendariz13 Members2Enrollment and ReviewDunixi Guereca1 Member -Reference (Executive Board of the Legislative Council)Ben Hansen9 Members1RulesLoren Lippincott6 Members -Special committeesExecutive Board of the Legislative Council (Reference)Ben Hansen9 Members1Building MaintenanceJana Hughes6 Members -Justice Reinvestment OversightCarolyn Bosn5 Members -Legislative Performance AuditNone7 Members -PlanningWendy DeBoer9 Members -State-Tribal RelationsJane Raybould7 Members -Statewide Tourism and Recreation, Water Access,and Resource Sustainability (STAR WARS)John Arch7 Members -
Committee selection and election of chairs