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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 28, 1995)
inside JT\ I uesday Sports Big 12 athletic directors to meet today, page 12 Arts & Entertainment Bluesman Matt “Guitar” Murphy spends week at the Zoo Bar, page 15 • February 28, 1995 Baiting the hook 'f- Scott Bruhn/DN Senators Don Wesley of Lincoln and Bob Wickersham of Harrison discuss details about Micron with Maxine Moul, director of Nebraska Department of Economic Development, before voting on LB829 Monday morning at the | Legislature. LB829 passed with a 31-12 vote. Incentive bills pass; Nebraska waits for Micron’s decision 1 \ By J. Christopher Hain Senior Reporter - ■if' Nebraska has laid all its cards on the table in the big Micron gamble. Monday morning, LB828 and LB829, the last two of the three Micron incentive bills, passed on final reading in the Legisla ture. Gov. Ben Nelson followed by signing the bills in the afternoon. Nelson said that with LB830, the bills provided the legislation necessary to entice Micron to Nebraska. Micron is an Idaho-based computer-chip company that is proposing to build a $1.3 billion, 3,500-employee plant in either 1- . . Omaha, Oklahoma City or Utah County, Utah. Micron will decide Wednesday where it will build its plant, and state senators have been rushing to get the bills passed before the deadline. Sen. Ron Withem of Papillion, sponsor of the three bills, said the members of the Legislature stood up well under pressure to get the bills passed. “Our Legislature isn’t used to this kind of pressure this early in session,” Withem said. LB828 allows public power districts to negotiate rates with companies that use a large amount of energy. It was passed on a 39-7 vote with an emergency clause that allows the bill to take effect on May 1. LB829 allows companies to retain new employees’ income-tax withholding to pay for job training. To qualify, a company must invest $50 million and create 500 new See SIGNED on 7 .Five cards Nebraska is holding to its effort to win at the game of r faring Micron's $1.3 billion, ,3,500-employee plant. ■ LB828. Allows public power districts to negotiate rates with / companies that use a large amount of energy. - ■ LB829. Allows companies to retain new employees' income tax witholding to pay for job training, fc; Jjj§ ■ LB830. Allows cities to declare land up to 10 miles outside its boundary as substandard. ■ CorpNet. NU would provide master's degree classes in the plant. 1WP ■ Engineering education. NU ajsg would speed up its improvement of UNO's engineering program! Modifications to welfare get approved By Charles Isom Staff Reporter Nebraska has received approval from the Clinton Administration to advance with its welfare reforms, Gov. Ben Nelson announced Monday. Nelson said the state’s welfare reforms would be the most extensive of any of the 23 other states given a go-ahead. The reforms are meant to reduce the num ber of Nebraskans on welfare. Nebraska’s pack age, now before the Legislature in LB455, contains 29 waivers designed to give welfare recipients incentives to get off the system. Under Nebraska’s plan, the state would be given the authority to require welfare recipi ents to sign a self-sufficiency contract that defines the relationship between the Nebraska government and the recipient. Also, families using the Aid to Families with Dependent Children program would have benefits cut off after two years. After that time, adults who are able would be required to work. The state could stop automatic cash pay ments to women who have been on welfare for 10 months and give birth to more children. “We’re not trying to punish those in need of our help,” Nelson said. “Our hope is that many families will be able to be on their own in a shorter time period. The safety net will still be in place.” The Department of Social Services places the number of Nebraska families on welfare at around 16,000, of which 12,000 have an em ployable adult who would qualify for the pro gram. The other 4,000 are families or individuals who are not employable because of physical, mental or emotional reasons. These people would be given the opportunity to reach their own levels of independence, Nelson said. The programs would impact the Omaha and Lincoln areas first. Forty percent of the state’s ADC population live in the Omaha metropoli tan area. The program, which could start as early as July 1, will continue for a year and be evaluated. The state could expand the plans statewide after one year. Nelson said the waivers included provi sions that were beneficial to those on welfare. Child-care subsidies are provided for 12 to 24 months to help after a person leaves wel fare. Transitional health care benefits would be provided for the same time. One waiver also encourages, but does not require, minor parents to live with their par ents. The system now encourages minor par ents to move out of their parents’ home. “For Nebraskans,” Nelson said, “it means we can begin to transform the complex spider web welfare system we now have into the' simplified safety net it was intended to be.” Kansas students injured in brawl outside SigmaNu By Chad Lorenz Staff Reporter A Kansas college student will undergo reconstructive surgery to his face Thursday after being in jured in a fight outside UNL’s Sigma Nu Fraternity last weekend. Darin Williams, a senior at Baker University in Baldwin, Kan., sus tained three fractures on the right side of his face after being hit with what doctors identified as a foreign object, said Jeff Gossard, president of Delta Tau Delta Fraternity at Baker. University of Nebraska-Lincoln Police Sgt. Bill Manning said two members of the Baker fraternity were hospitalized after a fight with mem bers of Sigma Nu. Gossard said Williams, along with fraternity brother Rob Winfrey, were beaten by at least five mem bers of Sigma Nu in front of that house. The two were visiting the UNL Delta Tau Delta chapter for the weekend. Marty Martin, president of Sigma Nu, declined comment. Gossard gave the following ac count of the incident: After an exchange of words in front of the Sigma Nu house, at least five Sigma Nu members attacked two Baker Delts standing on the See FIGHT on 7 HUSKERnet system congested By Brian Jensen Staff Reporter The University ofNebraska-Lin coln is expanding the technology for the HUSKERnet system—again. The Computer Resource Center is planning to upgrade its system to meet the rising demands of UNL students. UNL has more than 6,000 students with accounts, causing con gestion on the current system. “Hie current system is very busy during mid-morning and late at night, causing it to work very slowly,” said Guy Jones, director of technical ser vices for CRC. “Students are increasingly be coming more familiar with the sys tem and are doing more compli cated work,” he said. “We hope to keep ahead of the growing demand by upgrading it to the next level.” One of the biggest plans for the system is to upgrade the backbone of the system, which is responsible for connecting all the computers. Jones said a new system called the ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) would increase the speed of the network. It also will add voice, video and data to the system. “We will gradually transfer this throughout the year, and hopefully it will be complete by next year,” Jones said. Jones said the CRC also would use a fund provided by the academic affairs office. The fund will provide all students with e-mail accounts so they have more access to the Internet. The new system will replace the current herbie system sometime this summer. A name for the new e-mail system has not been determined. “We still don’t have a name for the new system, so we may let the campus decide,” Jones said. Most students seem to be pleased with the expansion plans. Vas Bishu, a sophomore at UNL, said the up grade was needed. “I have always thought they needed ar way to allow more stu dents the opportunity to use the Internet,” he said. “I think the plans for the system are a good idea.” Jones said similar upgrades were occurring around the country. “There are thousands of univer sities doing similar things to meet the demands of their students. Hie more people use computers, the more we will continue to expand,” Jones said.
