Update: Pillen vetoes bill allowing public entities to be sued over child sexual assault

Gov. Jim Pillen vetoed a bill Wednesday that would have enabled victims to file lawsuits against school districts and political subdivisions over child sexual abuse.

The bill advanced from final reading last week on a 28-17 vote, including the support of every Democrat and a dozen Republicans in the officially nonpartisan Nebraska legislature.

“LB25 creates a new body of law and would substantially increase the costs Nebraska taxpayers must bear for claims of abuse by both government employees and even non-employees." Pillen wrote in a letter explaining his veto.

Pillen also expressed concerns that the bill would erode sovereign immunity protections and fail to protect children.

Sen. Justin Wayne, who sponsored the bill, wrote a statement expressing his disappointment in the governor’s veto.

“If the Governor is afraid that the liability for holding government accountable would cost too much, then it begs the question, how many children are being sexually assaulted at the hands of government negligence?” Wayne wrote.

Sen. Danielle Conrad also issued a statement.

"The legislature was rightly trying to reset the balance to ensure the same legal standard and access to justice applies to schools and government that already applies to private businesses and private schools," she wrote.

Conrad invited Loree Woods, an advocate for LB25, to share her family's story with media Thursday.

Woods said news of the governor’s veto was a gut punch to her family.

She claimed her daughter, Taylor, was sexually assaulted by another student in 2016 while in Lincoln Public Schools’ VOICE program for students with disabilities.

According to Woods, her daughter was left unattended at the time of the assault.

Woods said it hurt her heart to see the governor value taxes over her daughter's livelihood.

“It's never been about us making bank," she said. "It's been about accountability to get policies changed, to get her the physical therapy that she needs.”

There will not be an opportunity for state senators to override the governor’s veto since the legislature has already adjourned for the session.

Conrad said she will work to pass the bill again in future legislative sessions.