Justia Government & Administrative Law Opinion Summaries

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court denying the petition and application filed by the State of Nebraska, Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to vacate an arbitration award resulting from a labor dispute and confirming the award, holding that the district court did not err.On appeal, DHHS argued that the arbitrator exceeded his powers under DHHS' labor contract the Nebraska Association of Public Employees, Local #61 of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees and that the district court erred in finding that the arbitrator did not exceed his powers. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) whatever insufficiency existed in the findings of fact and conclusions of law, DHHS was instrumental in bringing about that insufficiency; and (2) the district court did not err by finding that the arbitrator did not add to or modify the labor contract and concluding that the arbitrator did not exceed his powers. View "State v. Neb. Ass'n of Public Employees" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court that affirmed the decision of the Nebraska State Personnel Board upholding the termination of Scott Mollring's employment as a teacher for the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, holding that there was no error.On appeal, Mollring argued that the district court erroneously determined that because he had not completed two calendar years of employment at the time of his dismissal, he was a probationary employee who could be terminated without cause. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the district court did not err in concluding that "two years" under Neb. Rev. Stat. 79-845 means two calendar years, and cause was not required; and (2) the court correctly determined that Mollring was still in the probationary period and that his employment could be terminated without cause. View "Mollring v. Neb. Dep't of Health & Human Services" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the district court granting summary judgment in favor of Respondents, the Board of Parole and one of its officers, and denying the writ of mandamus sought by Appellant, a committed offender serving an indeterminate sentence, holding that there was no error.Appellant sought a writ of mandamus compelling Respondents to disclose the record of an informal parole review proceeding during which Appellant was interviewed by two Board members who found that Appellant was not reasonably likely to be granted parole. The district court denied the writ, concluding that the record was part of the individual file deemed confidential under Neb. Rev. Stat. 83-1,125.01 and that the record fell within the investigatory records exception of Neb. Rev. Stat. 84-712.05(5). The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that there was no error in the proceedings below. View "Jacob v. Neb. Bd. of Parole" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court upholding the Tax Commissioner's conclusion that Taxpayers failed to prove that they abandoned their domicile in Florida, holding that competent evidence supported the district court's factual findings and that its decision conformed to the law.The audit period in this case covered the calendar-year tax years from 2010 to 2014. Taxpayers, who filed income tax returns as married filing jointly, filed Nebraska income tax returns claiming status as nonresidents of Nebraska. The Department sent Taxpayers notices of proposed deficiency determinations for each tax year of the audit period, and the Commissioner denied Taxpayers' petitions for redetermination. The district court affirmed, determining that Taxpayers were residents of Nebraska during the audit period because they were domiciled in Nebraska in each of those years. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the district court's decision conformed to the law, was supported by competent evidence, and was neither arbitrary, capricious, nor unreasonable. View "Acklie v. Neb. Department of Revenue" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court denying Appellant's petition for writ of habeas corpus pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. 25-217, holding that the petition did not state a cognizable ground for relief.Appellant pled no contest to attempted first degree sexual assault and was sentenced to a term of imprisonment. Appellant later filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus alleging that his conviction and sentence were void. The district court dismissed the action without prejudice pursuant to section 25-217. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the district court erred when it dismissed the habeas petition pursuant to section 25-217 because section 25-217 has no application to habeas corpus proceedings; and (2) upon de novo review, it was proper to dismiss the petition for writ of habeas corpus because none of the allegations in the petition set forth facts which, if true, would entitle Appellant to habeas relief. View "Childs v. Frakes" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court reversed the decision of the Tax Equalization and Review Commission (TERC) affirming the decision of the Lancaster County Board of Equalization affirming the valuations of the agricultural land owned by Mary and Brad Moser for the tax year 2020 but reversing the County Board's decisions for the 2018 and 2019 tax years, holding that TERC erred.For the tax years 2018 and 2019, TERC reduced the value of the Mosers' irrigated acres to equalize those acres with a nearby parcel of agricultural property. The Supreme Court (1) reversed TERC's decision to the extent it ordered that irrigated cropland on certain property be valued as drylands cropland for the 2018 and 2019 tax years, holding that TERC's conclusions as to this property was factually incorrect, was not supported by competent evidence, failed to conform to the law, and was unreasonable; and (2) otherwise affirmed, holding that there was no error was to the 2020 tax year valuation. View "Lancaster County Bd. of Equalization v. Moser" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court dismissing Plaintiff's tort action against the State of Nebraska, the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services (DCS) and its director, and the Nebraska State Patrol (NSP), holding that the State had not waived its its sovereign immunity with respect to Plaintiff's claim.Plaintiff filed this negligence action alleging "Negligent Disclosure and Review of Sealed Records" alleging that NSP negligently disclosed Plaintiff's sealed criminal history records to DCS in violation of Neb. Rev. Stat. 29-3523. The district court dismissed the complaint, in its entirety, for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) Plaintiff failed to allege a tort claim as that term is defined in the State Tort Claims Act (STCA), Neb. Rev. Stat. 81-8,209 to 81-8,235; and (2) therefore, the State did not waive its sovereign immunity with respect to Plaintiff's claim. View "Doe v. State" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court finding that the exclusivity provisions of the Nebraska Workers' Compensation Act (the Act), Neb. Rev. Stat. 48-101 to 48-1,117 barred the claim of an employee of the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services that the Department violated the Nebraska Fair Employment Practice Act (NFEPA), Neb. Rev. Stat. 48-1101 to 48-1125, holding that the district court lacked jurisdiction over the employee's NFEPA action.Plaintiff was injured while participating in mandated self-defense training and sought and received workers' compensation benefits from the time she was injured. After Plaintiff was unable to find a position with the Department that would accommodate her physical restrictions she brought this action against the Department for wrongful termination on the basis of her disability, in violation of NFEPA. The district court granted summary judgment for the Department on the basis of the exclusivity provisions of the Act barred Plaintiff's NFEPA claim as a matter of law. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the district court correctly determined that it lacked jurisdiction over Plaintiff's NFEPA claim. View "Dutcher v. Nebraska Dep't of Correctional Services" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the Tax Equalization and Review Commission (TERC) affirming the judgment of the Perkins County Board of Equalization dismissing a 2021 property valuation protest brought by Mid America Products/Wheatland Industries LLC (Wheatland) because it was not timely filed, holding that there was no error.Wheatland, which owned a real estate parcel in Perkins County, protested the Perkins County assessor's valuation for the 2021 tax year. The Board automatically dismissed the 2021 protest as a matter of law. TERC affirmed, concluding that the Board correctly dismissed Wheatland's protest because the protest had not been timely filed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that because Wheatland's protest was filed after the statutory June 30 deadline, the Board properly dismissed the protest of the 2021 property valuation. View "Mid America Agri Products v. Perkins County Bd. of Equalization" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the district court's judgment affirming the Nebraska Department of Revenue's denial of Gelco Fleet Trust's claim for a refund on sales tax it allegedly overpaid on the purchase price of a new vehicle, holding that there were no errors on the record.Gelco submitted a claim for refund of sales tax, which the Department denied. On appeal, the district court affirmed the Department's decision, determining that the Department properly included the disputed amount in the sales price and calculation of sales tax. The Supreme Court affirmed holding that the district court's determination conformed to the law, was supported by competent evidence, and was neither arbitrary capricious, nor unreasonable. View "Gelco Fleet Trust v. Neb. Dep't of Revenue" on Justia Law