LINCOLN, Neb. (KMTV) — The 61st day in Nebraska's 108th legislative session was an unusual one, but LB 574, a bill limiting gender-affirming care for youth, has advanced.
The Unicameral was listening to an amendment for LB 574 — the "Let Them Grow Act" — before briefly postponing for recess in the middle of the afternoon. The author of the amendment, Kathleen Kauth who also introduced LB 574, had asked her fellow senators to vote no on the amendment and pass LB 574 as is.
Following that recess Speaker John Arch took to the mic, urging his fellow senators to adopt the amendment to LB 574 as it can no longer be amended in the Final Reading stage of debate. Ultimately the amendment was not adopted, failing to get the necessary votes with only 11 senators voting to adopt it versus 28 who voted against it. The amendment would have maintained the ban on gender reassignment surgery for people under 19 years of age, but would have allowed for hormone therapy and treatment for related post-op issues.
Immediately following the amendment vote, senators voted to advance the bill to the engrossment and review stage. It advanced without an amendment, which means senators will not be able to introduce any amendments without first sending the bill back to Select file, a time-consuming and unlikely option.
LB 574 is perhaps the most hotly debated bill of the session even as LB 626 is reaching the same stage of the legislative process. It is the subject of Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh's session-long filibusterthat began after the bill's introduction and is the reason why Westboro Baptist Church rallied on the steps of the Capitol Thursday.
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