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Heineman: Turnover presents opportunity
McCOOK, Neb. -- The Nebraska legislature is preparing for an unprecedented turnover of leadership in the coming year due to term limits, a situation which may present an opportunity for advocates of expanding the McCook Work Ethic Camp.
Gov. Dave Heineman encouraged local business and community leaders to make certain incoming representatives on the Judiciary Committee were well informed when it came to the situation at the WEC. The comment came during a public meeting the Governor coordinated Thursday afternoon at the McCook Municipal Center.
Gov. Heineman was responding to a question from McCook City Councilman Jerry Calvin, asking why legislators often discussed new prison construction in response to overcrowding issues, when the McCook WEC already had the land, utilities and infrastructure to double in capacity.
Gov. Heineman said new leadership on the judiciary committee may present an opportunity for a fresh look at expansion instead of new construction. He also recommended encouraging whoever took the mantle for the term-limited District 44 State Senator Mark Christensen was well aware of the situation and lobbied on behalf of WEC expansion.
Both District 44 candidates, Dan Hughes and Steve Stroup, were among the attendees at the meeting.
Gov. Heineman said the WEC often faced opposition from legislators that said McCook was too far for the family of many inmates to travel, but he didn't believe the state should be coddling inmates to that degree. Heineman indicated the level at which inmates are currently comforted, "with access to every TV channel," may be contributing to prison capacity issues facing the state.
Heineman also said a common narrative from at least one Senator was that the state should release non-violent offenders in response to capacity issues. Heineman said the reality of that situation was that it had already been done and those in Nebraska's prison system today were there because they were repeat offenders and a risk to the community.
Gov. Heineman called Thursday's meeting to offer an economic update on the state, as well as to gather information on the situation locally. He said he was very impressed with the progress Cambridge had made recently and attended the groundbreaking for the new Cobblestone Hotel and presented opening remarks at the Anew Travel Center just prior to his meeting in McCook.
Gov. Heineman said Nebraska received recognition recently as the 2013 no. 1 state in the country for economic growth, on a per capita basis. Heineman said the ranking was a reflection of the state's success in various agricultural industries, including being the no. 1 state in the country for cattle feeding after surpassing Texas in recent years, the no. 3 corn production state and the no. 5 soybean producer.
Heineman said Nebraska has made enormous strides since he took office in 2005, referencing improved water efficiency stemming from practices on the farm, the work of Natural Resource Districts and improvements in irrigation technology.
"Our state's economy is more diversified today than ever before," said Heineman, pointing at an unemployment rate of 3 1/2 percent compared to many other states in the 7-8 percent range or higher.
Three of the last four years Nebraska has seen higher economic development growth than the national average, "if we can sustain that for a decade, think of what that can do," said Heineman.
Heineman said the success the state was experiencing was a direct reflection of the leadership in place in our communities across the state and the effort on a local level to keep those communities moving forward.