LB 965 Legislature · 109th Legislature (2025-2026)

Prohibit sexual abuse of a probationer or problem solving court participant and sexual abuse by a conservator, guardian, guardian ad litem, or child welfare service provider; change provisions relating to protection orders, certain offenses, attorney's fees, and victim notification requirements; and provide requirements for immunity for probation employees, Brady-Giglio disclosures, confidentiality for certain officers, registration under the Sex Offender Registration Act, county conflict counsel, and determinations of the best interest of the child

LB 965 prohibits sexual abuse of probationers, problem-solving court participants, and individuals under guardianship or child welfare services. It creates new legal protections for these vulnerable groups by defining and prohibiting such abuse by specific professionals like conservators, guardians, and child welfare providers. The bill also grants immunity to probation employees who administer naloxone for opioid overdoses and requires sex offender registration for violations related to these new prohibitions. These changes update Nebraska's criminal code to address gaps in protecting individuals under court supervision or care.
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Mar 2026
Legislature Passage
Apr 2026
Legislature Passage
Mar 2026
Signed into Law
Apr 2026
Introduced Jan 12, 2026 Signed Apr 17, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Enrollment and Review ER180 Final Reading · 4 edits
MODERATE
The bill was renumbered and reorganized to consolidate multiple legal updates into a single legislative text. The most significant substantive change involves redefining penalties for violating protection orders, creating a tiered sentencing system where repeat offenses escalate from misdemeanors to felonies. Additionally, the bill clarifies the definition of 'sexual assault' to include specific acts against vulnerable populations like inmates and school workers, and it updates rules regarding the admissibility of character evidence in court.
Scope change
The bill's scope expanded to include specific protections for probationers, problem-solving court participants, and child welfare service providers under the definition of sexual assault.
ENFORCEMENT

Violations of domestic abuse and sexual assault protection orders now carry escalating penalties based on the number of offenses, ranging from a Class I misdemeanor for a first offense to a Class IIA felony for a fourth or subsequent offense.

DEFINITION

The definition of sexual assault was updated to explicitly include sexual abuse of inmates, parolees, probationers, and problem-solving court participants.

REQUIREMENT

Rules governing the admissibility of character evidence in court were revised to clarify when evidence of a victim's character or past behavior can be used in homicide and sexual assault cases.

TECHNICAL

The document was restructured from an enrollment amendment format into a final reading bill format, and several section numbers were reorganized to align with the Nebraska Criminal Code.

Floor votes · Legislature Mar 31, 2026

How they voted

440
Passed · 5 other
Total votes 49
Mar 31, 2026
N Nonpartisan49
44 Yea 5
89% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
96
Key actions
18
Committee
2
Amendments
7
Apr 17, 2026
Introduced
Provisions/portions of LB1123 amended into LB965 by AM3014
legislature
Apr 17, 2026
Introduced
Provisions/portions of LB1000 amended into LB965 by AM3012
legislature
Apr 17, 2026
Introduced
Provisions/portions of LB965 amended into LB965 by AM3009
legislature
Apr 17, 2026
Introduced
Provisions/portions of LB908 amended into LB965 by AM3010
legislature
Apr 17, 2026
Introduced
Provisions/portions of LB859 amended into LB965 by AM3015
legislature
Apr 17, 2026
Introduced
Provisions/portions of LB818 amended into LB965 by AM3013
legislature
Apr 17, 2026
Introduced
Provisions/portions of LB785 amended into LB965 by AM3016
legislature
Apr 17, 2026
Signed into law
Approved by Governor on April 16, 2026
executive
Apr 10, 2026
Legislature · Passed
President/Speaker signed
legislature
Apr 10, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Passed on Final Reading 39-10-0
legislature
Apr 8, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Dungan AM3125 adopted
legislature
Apr 8, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Dungan AM3140 adopted
legislature
Apr 8, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Dungan AM3038 adopted
legislature
Apr 8, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Bosn AM3139 adopted
legislature
Apr 8, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Bosn FA1193 adopted
legislature
Apr 8, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Enrollment and Review ER180 adopted
legislature
Mar 31, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Judiciary AM3014 adopted
legislature
Mar 31, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Cavanaugh, J. AM3039 adopted
legislature
Mar 31, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Judiciary AM3013 adopted
legislature
Mar 31, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Judiciary AM3012 adopted
legislature
Mar 31, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Judiciary AM3015 adopted
legislature
Mar 31, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Judiciary AM3016 adopted
legislature
Mar 31, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Judiciary AM3010 adopted
legislature
Mar 31, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Judiciary AM3009 adopted
legislature
Mar 25, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Placed on General File with AM2846
legislature
Jan 14, 2026
Committee
Referred to Judiciary Committee
legislature
Jan 12, 2026
Introduced
Date of introduction
legislature
1 primary · 1 co-sponsor

Sponsors