Nebraska was part of the Louisiana Purchase when Thomas Jefferson helped negotiate and complete the purchase from Napoleon Bonaparte of France in 1803. A year later in 1804, Lewis and Clark reached the eastern edge of Nebraska while traveling the Oregon Trail.
The Kansas-Nebraska Act was passed by the U.S. Congress on May 30, 1854. It allowed people in the territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide for themselves whether or not to allow slavery within their borders. The act served to repeal the Missouri Compromise of 1820 that prohibited slavery north of latitude 36°30´.
Nebraska was admitted to the Union on March 1, 1867. There are three branches of state government in Nebraska, executive, judicial and legislative. The executive branch consists of the governor and state agencies. The judicial branch comprises state and county courts. The legislative branch has a state assembly with one chamber (all other U.S. states consist of two).
In accordance with the proclamation of Acting Governor Cuming, the first legislature of Nebraska territory convened at Omaha, January 16, 1855. Nebraska's legislature is unique among all state legislatures in the nation because of its single-house legislature; however, it wasn't always a unicameral government. The state had a senate and a house of representatives for 68 years before Nebraskans voted to get rid of half of their state legislature in 1934.
The outcome raised doubts elsewhere about the necessity of having two houses based on population, stirring many states to evaluate their own systems. Many states looked to Nebraska as a model of an effective one-house legislature, including California, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Montana, New York, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Texas. Nebraska officials visited many states to spread the word about unicameralism. Journalists and officials from other states also visited Nebraska. Despite the interest unicameralism received over the years, Nebraska remains the only state with a unicameral legislature.
There are 49 districts represented in the Nebraska Unicameral, each with approximately 32,200 people. Senators are elected to four-year terms. A single legislature session exists for two years, called a biennium. There are two regular lawmaking sessions per biennium, each beginning in January. The biennium begins in odd-numbered years with a long session that consists of 90 working days. A shorter session is held in even-numbered years and consists of 60 working days. Long sessions usually last until mid-June and short sessions usually last until mid-April. At the call of the governor, special sessions also may be held. A senator is responsible to represent the people and the best interests of his or her legislative district.
The League of Nebraska Municipalities is a nonprofit service association that serves as a voice for Nebraska municipalities before the legislature. Governed by a 15-member executive board comprising municipal officials, the league now has more than 385 member cities and towns. It represents cities whose population totals 98 percent of Nebraska residents who live in municipalities. The league's mission is to represent the interests of all member cities and villages to preserve local control and empower municipal officials to form the destiny of their municipality as well as improve their citizens' quality of life.
In 1944, Congress passed the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program, which authorized the creation of flood control dams, reservoirs and hydroelectric plants in states drained by the Missouri River, which included Nebraska.
The Nebraska Department of Education (NDE) is a constitutional agency approved by Nebraska voters, which operates under the authority of an elected board of education. NDE is a group of teams that work together to operate the agency and carry out the duties assigned by state and federal statutes and the policy directions of the State Board of Education. The teams are organized around distinct functions and responsibilities that encompass leadership and support for Nebraska's system of early childhood, primary, secondary and postsecondary education.
Nebraska has 96 counties. Sarpy County is the smallest at 247 square miles with a population of 122,595. The largest county in Nebraska is Cherry County at 6,010 square miles, population 6,148. Lincoln County, population 225,000, is home to the city of Lincoln, Nebraska's state capital.
Lowest Rates and Free candid reviews for Nebraska at Tripadvisor.com.
Employment Agencies
Schools
Hospitals
Government
Libraries
Churches
Travel
Physicians
Lawyers
Accountants
Videos