Neighboring State Passes Bathroom Bill; Nebraska Unlikely to Follow Suit This Year
by John Gage
Kansas lawmakers voted to successfully override Democratic Governor Laura Kelly’s veto on Wednesday in the House after Senate Republicans took similar action on Tuesday. The bill requires public schools and government buildings to take reasonable measures to segregate locker rooms and restrooms by sex.
Following the vote, Nebraska remains the only state with a Republican Governor and Legislature in the Midwest that has not enacted a similar measure. Overall, twenty states have passed some form of the law, including Iowa, Wyoming, Ohio, Oklahoma, as well as North and South Dakota.
On Wednesday, the Nebraska Legislature’s Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee advanced LB730, Senator Kathleen Kauth’s priority bill, which ensures public schools and state agencies will segregate their restrooms and locker rooms by sex. Kauth said she is “pleased” with the progress the bill is making but anticipates opposition from Republican Senator Merv Riepe, who has been vocal in his opposition to the bill.
“Sen Riepe still does not believe males in female private spaces like bathrooms and locker rooms is an issue we should be concerned about,” she said. The bill will need 33 votes to break the Unicameral’s filibuster. Democrats and self-described Democratic Socialist, Megan Hunt, are uniformly opposed to the measure, which means only one Republican is needed to stop the bill from going to cloture.
In 2025, Riepe voted for LB89 the “Stand With Women Act,” which initially included a ban on transgender athletes competing in women’s sports as well as the segregation of locker rooms and restrooms on the condition that the locker room and restroom part of the legislation was stripped out of the final bill. Riepe said he “did not run for the Legislature to be part of the Nebraska Potty Patrol.”
In a statement to The Plains Sentinel, Riepe touted his vote to not allow biological males to play in women’s sports, but said he was a “No” vote on LB730 and expected the bill would not break the filibuster. “Legislation to place restrictions on public bathroom[s] cannot be managed, hence, needs to never happen,” he said. “Texas recently passed restrictive public legislation and cannot figure out ho[w] to police public bathrooms.”
Kauth’s bill has the support of Governor Jim Pillen, who said in a statement he “proudly” stands behind it.
“Men shouldn’t be in girl’s private spaces,” Pillen said. “That’s a straightforward statement — and it shouldn’t be controversial. Unfortunately, many on the left don’t agree. Through LB730, we’re taking action to protect the privacy rights and dignity of students — especially young women — in locker rooms and bathrooms. The safety of our kids is too important, and the vast majority of Nebraskans believe in common-sense, biological realities.”
John Gage is the Executive Editor of The Plains Sentinel.
