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LINCOLN — A plan aimed at improving the chances of Nebraska youth successfully reentering their communities after a stint in state custody sailed Thursday to its next lawmaking step.
State lawmakers advanced Legislative Bill 962 on a 41-0 vote. Core to the “Youth Reentry and Transitional Support Act” is that a multi-agency transition plan would be created when a person under age 21 enters the system and not when they are about to be released, said State Sen. Terrell McKinney of North Omaha, who made the bill his session priority.
He said the measure builds upon a law he championed last year — the “Family Resource and Juvenile Assessment Center Pilot,” which faced more resistance and near demise.
Together, McKinney sees the measures improving the reentry process and helping to ensure young people don’t return to trouble or homelessness.
“If we want different outcomes, we must build different systems,” he said.
No one spoke against the bill during an earlier public hearing, and it won unanimous support from the Legislature’s Judiciary Committee with amendments that, according to McKinney, did not weaken his objective.
State Sen. Carolyn Bosn, chair of the Judiciary Committee, noted a change in the most recent version that eliminates any appropriation from the state’s general fund.
As amended, the bill calls for required tasks to be absorbed by the state agencies involved, including the Departments of Health and Human Services and Labor and Offices of Juvenile Services and Probation Administration.
McKinney told lawmakers Thursday that the bill was rooted in a “simple reality.”
He said, “The moment a young person exits a juvenile facility, probation supervision or residential placement is one of the most critical windows in determining whether they stabilize or recycle back into the system.
“Too often, our system focuses on custody and supervision but underinvests in transition planning” — such as stable housing, identification documents, job and education pathways, a coordinated approach to affirming behavior.
He said the bill establishes, on the front-end of placement, a more individualized and stronger bridge for when that young person exits. He said it also incorporates “lived-experience” mentoring.
Bosn said the goal is “a warm handoff,” from an “out-of-home” state placement back to a home setting.
McKinney said he sees LB 962 working in tandem with his previous priority, Legislative Bill 48, which in 2025 established the around-the-clock family resource and juvenile assessment center pilot program.
That measure passed into law after a tumultuous debate process.
“Together these efforts strengthen our system, reduce recidivism and limit unnecessary system involvement,” McKinney said.
