NEBRASKA PRESS ASSOC / LEX - Ad from 2026-10-13

STATEWIDE BALLOT MEASURES FOR GENERAL ELECTION, NOVEMBER 3, 2026
LEGAL NOTICE OF MEASURES TO BE VOTED
UPON AT THE GENERAL
ELECTION OCCURRING
ON NOVEMBER 3, 2026
BALLOT TITLE AND TEXT
OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL
AMENDMENT PROPOSED
BY THE LEGISLATURE
BALLOT TITLE AND TEXT
OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL
AND STATUTORY INITIATIVES PROPOSED BY INITIATIVE PETITION
PROPOSED AMENDMENT
NO. 1
A vote FOR will amend the
state constitution to increase
the term limit for state legislators from two consecutive
four-year terms (eight years)
to three consecutive four-year
terms (12 years).
A vote AGAINST will not
amend the Nebraska Constitution, so the current limit
of two consecutive four-year
terms will remain in effect.
State legislators will continue
to be ineligible for office in
the Legislature for four years
after serving two consecutive
terms.
A constitutional amendment to change the limit
on legislative terms from
two consecutive terms to
three consecutive terms.
For
Against
___________________________
PROPOSED BY INITIATIVE
PETITION
INITIATIVE MEASURE 440
BALLOT LANGUAGE FOR
INITIATIVE MEASURE 440
A vote “FOR” will amend the
Nebraska Constitution to
authorize the enactment of
laws to allow persons located
within Nebraska to place
sports wagers through an Internet-based platform when
offered by an authorized
gaming operator conducting
games of chance within a
licensed racetrack enclosure
in Nebraska.
A vote “AGAINST” means
the Nebraska Constitution
will not be amended in this
manner.
Shall the Nebraska Constitution be amended to
authorize the enactment
of laws allowing persons
located within Nebraska
to place sports wagers
through an Internet-based
platform when offered by
an authorized gaming operator conducting games
of chance within a licensed
racetrack enclosure in
Nebraska?
For
Against
___________________________
TEXT OF PROPOSED INITIATIVE MEASURE 440
(underscored language indicates added language, strike
through indicates language
being removed)
OBJECT STATEMENT: The
object of this petition is to
amend the Nebraska Constitution to state that laws
may be enacted allowing
sports wagers to be placed
within the State of Nebraska
through an Internet-based
platform offered by an authorized gaming operator.
TEXT: Article III, section
24, of the Constitution of
Nebraska shall be amended
as shown:
(1) Except as provided in
this section, the Legislature
shall not authorize any game
of chance or any lottery or
gift enterprise when the
consideration for a chance
to participate involves the
payment of money for the
purchase of property, services, or a chance or admission ticket or requires an
expenditure of substantial
effort or time.
(2) The Legislature may authorize and regulate a state
lottery pursuant to subsection (3) of this section and
other lotteries, raffles, and
gift enterprises which are
intended solely as business
promotions or the proceeds
of which are to be used solely
for charitable or community
betterment purposes without profit to the promoter of
such lotteries, raffles, or gift
enterprises.
(3)(a) The Legislature may
establish a lottery to be
operated and regulated by
the State of Nebraska. The
proceeds of the lottery shall
be appropriated by the Legislature for the costs of establishing and maintaining the
lottery and for the following
purposes, as directed by the
Legislature:
(i) The first five hundred
thousand dollars after the
payment of prizes and operating expenses shall be
transferred to the Compulsive Gamblers Assistance
Fund;
(ii) Forty-four and one-half
percent of the money remaining after the payment of

prizes and operating expenses and the initial transfer to
the Compulsive Gamblers
Assistance Fund shall be
transferred to the Nebraska
Environmental Trust Fund
to be used as provided in
the Nebraska Environmental
Trust Act;
(iii) Forty-four and one-half
percent of the money remaining after the payment of
prizes and operating expenses and the initial transfer to
the Compulsive Gamblers
Assistance Fund shall be
used for education as the
Legislature may direct;
(iv) Ten percent of the money
remaining after the payment of prizes and operating expenses and the initial
transfer to the Compulsive
Gamblers Assistance Fund
shall be transferred to the
Nebraska State Fair Board
if the most populous city
within the county in which
the fair is located provides
matching funds equivalent
to ten percent of the funds
available for transfer. Such
matching funds may be
obtained from the city and
any other private or public entity, except that no
portion of such matching
funds shall be provided by
the state. If the Nebraska
State Fair ceases operations,
ten percent of the money
remaining after the payment of prizes and operating expenses and the initial
transfer to the Compulsive
Gamblers Assistance Fund
shall be transferred to the
General Fund; and
(v) One percent of the money
remaining after the payment of prizes and operating expenses and the initial
transfer to the Compulsive
Gamblers Assistance Fund
shall be transferred to the
Compulsive Gamblers Assistance Fund.
(b) No lottery game shall be
conducted as part of the
lottery unless the type of
game has been approved by
a majority of the members of
the Legislature.
(4) Nothing in this section
shall be construed to prohibit (a) the enactment of
laws providing for the licensing and regulation of
wagering on the results of
horseraces, wherever run,
either within or outside of
the state, by the parimutuel
method, when such wagering is conducted by licensees
within a licensed racetrack
enclosure or (b) the enactment of laws providing for
the licensing and regulation
of bingo games conducted
by nonprofit associations
which have been in existence
for a period of five years immediately preceding the application for license, except
that bingo games cannot be
conducted by agents or lessees of such associations on
a percentage basis.
(5) This section shall not
apply to any law which is
enacted contemporaneously with the adoption of
this subsection or at any
time thereafter and which
provides for the licensing,
authorization, regulation,
or taxation of all forms of
games of chance when such
games of chance are conducted by authorized gaming
operators within a licensed
racetrack enclosure, including sports wagering through
the Internet if the person
placing the sports wager is
located within the State of
Nebraska at the time the
wager is placed.
___________________________
PROPOSED BY INITIATIVE
PETITION
INITIATIVE MEASURE 441
BALLOT LANGUAGE FOR
INITIATIVE MEASURE 441
A vote “FOR” will enact statutes allowing persons located
within Nebraska to place
sports wagers through an Internet-based platform when
offered by an authorized
gaming operator conducting
games of chance within a
licensed racetrack enclosure
in Nebraska or the operator’s
platform provider, and regulating such sports wagers.
A vote “AGAINST” means no
such statutes will be enacted.
Shall statutes be enacted
that: (1) Allow persons
located within Nebraska
to place sports wagers
through an Internet-based
platform when offered by
an authorized gaming operator conducting games
of chance within a licensed
racetrack enclosure in
Nebraska or the operator’s
platform provider; and
(2) Regulate such sports
wagers?
For
Against
___________________________
TEXT OF PROPOSED INITIATIVE MEASURE 441
(underscored language indicates added language, strike
through indicates language
being removed)
OBJECT STATEMENT: The

object of this petition is to
enact a statute allowing
sports wagers to be placed
within the State of Nebraska through Internet-based
platforms offered by an authorized gaming operator,
or its contracted platform
provider, and regulate such
sports wagers.
TEXT: AN ACT relating
to gaming; to amend section 9-1102, Reissue Revised Statutes of Nebraska,
and sections 9-1103 and
9-1110, Revised Statutes
Supplement, 2025; to allow an authorized gaming
operator or its platform
provider to conduct sports
wagering by means of an
Internet-based platform
under the Nebraska Racetrack Gaming Act; to define and redefine terms; to
harmonize provisions; to
provide an operative date;
to provide severability;
and to repeal the original
sections.
Be it enacted by the people
of the State of Nebraska,
Section 1. Section
9-1102, Reissue Revised
Statutes of Nebraska, is
amended to read:
9-1102 Notwithstanding
any other provision of law,
and to the full extent permitted by the Constitution of
Nebraska, including amendments to the Constitution
of Nebraska adopted contemporaneously with the
enactment of the Nebraska
Racetrack Gaming Act, the
operation of games of chance
is permitted only by authorized gaming operators
within licensed racetrack
enclosures as provided in
the act, including, but not
limited to, the offer of sports
wagering through an online
sports wagering platform
by such authorized gaming
operators.
Sec. 2. Section
9-1103, Revised Statutes
Supplement, 2025, is
amended to read:
9-1103 For purposes of the
Nebraska Racetrack Gaming Act:
(1) Authorized gaming operator means a person or entity
licensed pursuant to the act
to operate games of chance
within a licensed racetrack
enclosure;
(2) Authorized gaming operator license means a license
to operate games of chance
as an authorized gaming
operator at a licensed racetrack enclosure, including
operating sports wagering
through an online sports
wagering platform if the person placing the sports wager
is located within the State
of Nebraska at the time the
sports wager is placed;
(3)(a) Except as otherwise
provided in subdivision (b) of
this subdivision, authorized
sporting event means a professional sporting event, a
collegiate sporting event, an
international sporting event,
a professional motor race
event, a professional sports
draft, an individual sports
award, an electronic sport,
or a simulated game; and
(b) Authorized sporting event
does not include an instate
collegiate sporting event in
which an instate collegiate
or university team is a participant, a parimutuel wager,
a fantasy sports contest,
a minor league sporting
event, a sporting event at
the high school level or below
regardless of the age of any
individual participant, or
any sporting event excluded
by the commission;
(4) Collegiate sporting event
means an athletic event or
competition of an intercollegiate sport played at the
collegiate level for which
eligibility requirements for
participation by a student
athlete are established by a
national association for the
promotion or regulation of
collegiate athletics;
(5) Commission means the
State Racing and Gaming
Commission;
(6) Designated sports wagering area means an area, as
approved by the commission, in which sports wagering is conducted within a licensed racetrack enclosure;
(7) Dollar amount collected means the total dollar
amount wagered by players
of games of chance less the
total dollar amount returned
to such players as prizes;
(8) Game of chance means
any game which has the
elements of chance, prize,
and consideration, including
any wager on a slot machine,
table game, counter game,
or card game, a keno lottery
conducted in accordance
with the Nebraska County
and City Lottery Act, or
sports wagering conducted
in accordance with section
9-1110. Game of chance
does not include any game
the operation of which is
prohibited at a casino by
federal law;
(9) Gaming device means
an electronic, mechanical,
or other device which plays

a game of chance when
activated by a player using
currency, a token, or other
item of value;
(10) Gross gaming revenue
means the dollar amount
collected by an authorized
gaming operator from operation of all games of chance
within a licensed racetrack
enclosure as computed pursuant to applicable statutes,
rules, and regulations less
the total of (a) all federal
taxes, other than income
taxes, imposed on the operation of such games of chance
and (b) the amount provided
to players by an authorized
gaming operator as promotional gaming credits, but
only to the extent such promotional gaming credits are
redeemed by players to play
one or more games of chance
being operated by the authorized gaming operator;
(11) International sporting
event means an international team or individual
sporting event gover ned
by an international sports
federation or sports governing body, including sporting
events governed by the International Olympic Committee and the International
Federation of Association
Football;
(12) Licensed racetrack enclosure has the same meaning as in section 2-1210;
(13) Limited gaming device
means an electronic gaming
device which (a) offers games
of chance, (b) does not dispense currency, tokens, or
other items of value, and (c)
does not have a cash winnings hopper, mechanical
or simulated spinning reel,
or side handle;
(14) Online sports wagering
platform means an integrated system of hardware,
software, or applications,
through which an authorized gaming operator, on
its own or through its contracted platform provider,
operates, conducts, or offers
sports wagering through the
Internet to persons located
within the State of Nebraska
at the time the sports wager
is placed;
(15) Platform provider means
a sports wagering services
provider that has a contract
with an authorized gaming
operator to provide an online
sports wagering platform;
(16) (14) Prohibited participant means any individual
whose participation may undermine the integrity of the
wagering or the sporting
event or any person who is
prohibited from sports wagering for other good cause
shown as determined by
the commission, including,
but not limited to: (a) Any
individual placing a wager
as an agent or proxy; (b)
any person who is an athlete, a coach, a referee, or a
player in any sporting event
overseen by the sports governing body of such person
based on publicly available
information; (c) a person
who holds a paid position of
authority or influence sufficient to exert influence over
the participants in a sporting
event, including, but not limited to, any coach, manager,
handler, or athletic trainer,
or a person with access to
certain types of exclusive
information, on any sporting event overseen by the
sports governing body of
such person based on publicly available information;
or (d) a person identified as
prohibited from sports wagering by any list provided
by a sports governing body
to the commission;
(17) (15) Promotional gaming credit means a credit,
token, or other item of value
provided by an authorized
gaming operator or its platform provider to a player
for the purpose of enabling
the player to play a game of
chance;
(18) (16) Racing license
means a license issued for a
licensed racetrack enclosure
by the commission; and
(19) (17) Sports wagering
means the acceptance of
wagers on an authorized
sporting event by any system
of wagering as authorized
by the commission. Sports
wagering does not include
(a) placing a wager on the
performance or nonperformance of any individual
athlete participating in a
single game or match of a
collegiate sporting event in
which a collegiate team from
this state is participating, (b)
placing an in-game wager
on any game or match of
a collegiate sporting event
in which a collegiate team
from this state is participating, (c) placing a wager on
the performance or nonperformance of any individual
athlete under eighteen years
of age participating in a
professional or international
sporting event, or (d) placing
a wager on the performance
of athletes in an individual
sporting event excluded by
the commission.
Sec. 3. Section
9-1110, Revised Statutes
Supplement, 2025, is
amended to read:

9-1110 (1) The commission may shall permit an
authorized gaming operator
to conduct sports wagering.
Any sports wager shall be
placed (a) through an online
sports wagering platform by
a person who is located within the State of Nebraska at
the time the sports wager is
placed or (b) in person or at
a wagering kiosk in the designated sports wagering area
at the licensed racetrack
enclosure. A parimutuel
wager in accordance with
sections 2-1201 to 2-1218
may be placed in the designated sports wagering area
at the licensed racetrack
enclosure. An individual
employed and authorized to
accept a sports wager may
also accept a parimutuel
wager.
(2) A floor plan identifying
the designated sports wagering area at the licensed racetrack enclosure, including
the location of any wagering
kiosks, shall be filed with
the commission for review
and approval. Modification
to a previously approved
plan must be submitted for
approval at least ten days
prior to implementation. The
area shall not be accessible
to persons under twenty-one
years of age and shall have
a sign posted to restrict access. Exceptions to this subsection must be approved in
writing by the commission.
(3) The authorized gaming operator shall submit
controls for approval by the
commission, that include
the following for operating
the designated sports wagering area at the licensed
racetrack enclosure:
(a) Specific procedures and
technology partners to fulfill
the requirements set forth by
the commission;
(b) Other specific controls
as designated by the commission;
(c) A process to easily and
prominently impose limitations or notification for
wagering parameters, including, but not limited to,
deposits and wagers; and
(d) An easy and obvious
method for a player to make
a complaint and to enable
the player to notify the commission if such complaint
has not been or cannot be
addressed by the sports
wagering operator.
(4) An authorized gaming operator using a server to host
an online sports wagering
platform shall use a server
that is located within the
State of Nebraska. An authorized gaming operator may
conduct sports wagering
through no more than two
online sports wagering platforms operated by platform
providers. The authorized
gaming operator and its platform providers shall submit
controls for approval by the
commission that fulfill the
requirements set forth by the
commission for operating an
online sports wagering platform. The commission shall
adopt and promulgate rules
and regulations for sports
wagering through an online
sports wagering platform on
or before June 1, 2027.
(5) (4) The commission shall
develop policies and procedures to ensure a prohibited
participant is unable to place
a sports wager or parimutuel
wager.
(6) (5) Beginning on the implementation date designated by the Tax Commissioner
pursuant to subsection (1) of
section 9-1312, prior to the
winnings payment of any
sports wagering winnings as
defined in section 9-1303, an
authorized gaming operator
or its platform provider shall
check the collection system
to determine if the winner
has a debt or an outstanding state liability as required
by the Gambling Winnings
Setoff for Outstanding Debt
Act. If such authorized gaming operator or its platform
provider determines that the
winner is subject to the collection system, the operator
shall deduct the amount of
debt and outstanding state
liability identified in the
collection system from the
winnings payment and shall
remit the net winnings payment of sports wagering winnings, if any, to the winner
and the amount deducted to
the Department of Revenue
to be credited against such
debt or outstanding state liability as provided in section
9-1306.
Sec. 4. This act
becomes operative on January 1, 2027.
Sec. 5. If any section or provision of this act
is determined by a court of
competent jurisdiction to be
unconstitutional or otherwise void or invalid for any
reason, such determination
shall not affect the validity
of the act as a whole or any
part thereof, other than the
part so determined to be unconstitutional or otherwise
void or invalid.
Sec. 6. Original
section 9-1102, Reissue Re-

vised Statutes of Nebraska,
and sections 9-1103 and
9-1110, Revised Statutes
Supplement, 2025, are repealed.
___________________________
PROPOSED BY INITIATIVE
PETITION
INITIATIVE MEASURE 442
BALLOT LANGUAGE FOR
INITIATIVE MEASURE 442
A vote “FOR” will amend
the Nebraska Constitution
to provide: (1) Schools must
expressly designate each
athletic team or sport as
one of the following based
on biological sex: (a) Males,
men, or boys; (b) females,
women, or girls; or (c) coed or
mixed; and (2) Athletic teams
or sports designated for females, women, or girls shall
not be open to students of the
male sex. The amendment
would apply to all athletic
teams or sports sponsored by
public schools or postsecondary educational institutions,
and private schools or educational institutions whose
athletic teams or sports compete against public schools or
institutions.
A vote “AGAINST” means
the Nebraska Constitution
will not be amended in this
manner.
Shall the Nebraska Constitution be amended to
provide: (1) Schools must
expressly designate each
athletic team or sport as
one of the following based
on biological sex: (a) Males,
men, or boys; (b) females,
women, or girls; or (c) coed
or mixed; and (2) Athletic
teams or sports designated
for females, women, or
girls shall not be open to
students of the male sex?
The amendment would apply to all athletic teams or
sports sponsored by public
schools or postsecondary
educational institutions,
and private schools or
educational institutions
whose athletic teams or
sports compete against
public schools or institutions.
For
Against
___________________________
TEXT OF PROPOSED INITIATIVE MEASURE 442
(underscored language indicates added language, strike
through indicates language
being removed)
OBJECT STATEMENT: The
object of this petition is to
amend the Nebraska Constitution to establish constitutional protections for
sex-separate athletics to ensure equal access to athletic
opportunities for females.
TEXT: Article VII of the
Constitution of Nebraska
shall be amended by adding a new section 16 as
shown:
Art. VII §16. Equal access
to athletic opportunities for
females.
(1) Schools must expressly
designate each athletic team
or sport as one of the following based on biological sex:
(a) Males, men, or boys; (b)
females, women, or girls; or
(c) coed or mixed.
(2) Athletic teams or sports
designated for females,
women, or girls pursuant to
subsection (1) of this section
shall not be open to students
of the male sex.
(3) For purposes of this section, “schools” shall mean
interscholastic, intercollegiate, and intramural athletic teams or sports that
are sponsored by a common
school of this state, a public
postsecondary educational
institution of this state, or
any school or institution
of learning in this state
not owned or exclusively
controlled by the state or a
political subdivision thereof
whose athletic teams or
sports compete against a
common school or public
postsecondary educational
institution of this state.
(4) This section shall be selfexecuting, but legislation
may be enacted to facilitate
its operation. If any part
or parts of this section are
found to conflict with federal
law or the Constitution of the
United States, this section
shall be implemented to the
maximum extent permitted by federal law and the
Constitution of the United
States. Any provision held
invalid shall be severable
from the remaining portions
of this section.
Respectfully submitted,
Robert B. Evnen
Secretary of State
(Publish three times, weeks
of Oct. 11, Oct. 18, and
Oct. 25)
ZNEZ