Pillen, lawmakers celebrate new laws for Nebraska National Guard recruitment and retention

LINCOLN — Gov. Jim Pillen and state senators joined leaders of the Nebraska National Guard this week to celebrate four new state laws to help with Guard recruitment and retention.

Pillen ceremoniously signed four bills passed this spring meant to help Guard members by removing a cap on tuition assistance at public universities or colleges (Legislative Bill 52), authorizing a dedicated financial incentives program for recruitment or retention (LB 895) and exempting weekend drill pay and two-week annual training pay from adjusted gross income for state taxes (LB 1394).

A fourth bill (LB 848) raised the maximum age at which the state adjutant general, who oversees the National Guard, can serve, from 64 to 66.

“We think we’re turning the corner,” Adj. Gen. Craig Strong said of recruitment and retention. “The momentum that these bills are giving us, we are in a good position to make 2025 a high point in our recruiting because of the tools that were provided to us.”

The bills took effect earlier this year and were introduced by State Sens. Loren Lippincott of Central City, Tom Brewer of north-central Nebraska and Rita Sanders of Bellevue.

‘A better person’

Strong thanked the officials and said the Army National Guard is at approximately 90% of authorized strength, while the Air National Guard is at about 97% strength.

Lippincott’s LB 52 removed a $900,000 cap on tuition assistance for Guard members. He served about a decade in the Air Force as an F-16 fighter pilot and instructor. He said the military helps young men and women improve their lives, allowing a “wild-eyed kid” to come out of basic training having learned discipline and restraint.

“Every day I think of my time in the military and how it has helped me to be a better person, I appreciate it,” Lippincott told the crowd of about 100 Guard members.

Sanders offered LB 895 to authorize Strong to study other state incentive programs for Guard service like those in Minnesota and Indiana and figure out what would work best in Nebraska, where retention has been great but recruitment has struggled.

“Such programs are new but rapidly developing,” Sanders said.

The federal government already has programs for enlistment and retention bonuses, Sanders added, as well as officer bonuses for those who go through officer candidate school or the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps. 

Strong could now decide to create a Nebraska program under Sanders’ bill.

Widespread support for the Guard

Brewer, a decorated service member who served 36 years, and who has continued to support military operations like those in Ukraine, offered LB 1394 to exempt the Guard income after Jan. 1, 2025, so starting with tax returns for 2026. He also offered LB 848 to give Strong or other adjutant generals an extended opportunity to serve, in line with federal standards.

This is Brewer’s last year in the Legislature due to term-limits. He celebrated the Legislature and Pillen specifically for caring about men and women in uniform.

“You guys are his family,” Brewer said of Pillen. “Consequently, when we bring ideas on how to help, he embraces them and he helps us to figure out how to turn them into law.”

Pillen noted that in the past year, he’s issued about six disaster declarations, to which the Guard responded to at least half. He said they were called to help other states “at a moment’s notice.” 

He thanked them for serving Nebraska and the country but said having the privilege to serve and wear the uniform should “never, ever be normal.”

“If anybody wakes and says, ‘It’s normal,’ it’s time. It’s time to move on because it’s an extraordinary privilege,” Pillen said, adding he would take his own advice if that happened to him while serving as governor. “I am in awe of all that you do.”

‘Don’t lose that opportunity’

Pillen said next steps don’t require legislation but could be recruiting by word of mouth, such as every Guard member in attendance talking to at least two K-12 students in the future.

Strong said the continued investments will make a real difference in the lives of soldiers and airmen and greatly impact the level of service offered for Nebraska and the nation.

He described recruitment and retention as the “lifeblood” of what it means for the Guard to always be ready, available and present, which is a “three-legged stool” built upon:

• Great training.
• Camaraderie, fellowing and the feeling of “being part of something bigger than themselves.”
• Benefits and incentives, which the state helps to fund and provide.

“Right now we are at a point where we feel we want to just take advantage of the advantages that have been given to us by the governor and the Legislature and see the results that will be reaped from those benefits,” Strong said of the new investments and laws.

Sanders, a former mayor of Bellevue, whose legislative district includes Offutt Air Force Base, thanked the Guard for being there for her city after a flood in 2011 and tornadoes in 2017. She also celebrated the Guard’s partnership with Rwanda for emergency and disaster responses.

Brewer, departing chair of the Legislature’s Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee, said good legislation in the past has come from Guard members, joining Lippincott and Sanders to encourage members to reach out with ideas ahead of the next legislative session. 

Sanders is so far the only lawmaker to toss their name into the ring for Brewer’s leadership position.

“There’s tremendous support for those wearing the uniform,” Brewer said. “Don’t lose that opportunity.”