Nebraska Auditor of Public Accounts Mike Foley speaks with reporters after a hearing before the Legislature's Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee on a bill brought at his request. Feb. 5, 2026. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)
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LINCOLN — A proposal to give the Nebraska state auditor easier oversight of no-bid state contracts was incorporated into a broader bill on Thursday after having been bottled up by a controversial amendment to the standalone bill.
AM 3075 from State Sen. Bob Andersen of Sarpy County essentially attached the language from Andersen’s original Legislative Bill 977 that State Auditor Mike Foley sought requiring an extra copy of any state no-bid contract, including emergency ones, be filed with the Nebraska State Auditor’s Office. Foley’s copies would be in addition to copies already held by the state agency entering the contract and the state’s contract clearinghouse, the Department of Administrative Services.
The Andersen proposal was tacked onto Speaker John Arch’s Legislative Bill 1048 on Thursday, a bill that would eliminate some required state agency reports and a system for encouraging suggestions from state employees.
Adding the contract bill this way lets Andersen remove controversial language that was inserted into his bill by State Sen. Beau Ballard of Lincoln — a step some on the Legislature’s Government, Military, and Veterans Affairs Committee have described as a “poison pill.” The Ballard language would have let people who live outside of the city limits but within the zoning jurisdiction of Nebraska’s two largest cities vote in city elections.
Lawmakers passed the Andersen amendment this week 42-0. LB 1048 then advanced to the third and final round of debate by voice vote.
Foley sought the requirement of filing separate copies with the auditor after investigating the Nebraska Department of Economic Development’s $2.5 million emergency no-bid contract with agricultural tech CEO Julie Bushell and her Global Sustainability Developers of Lincoln for bioeconomy consulting.
Gov. Jim Pillen recommended her for the contract, according to Foley’s audit letter. Foley’s probe raised questions about the process followed and whether there was a justifiable emergency to let the state agency skip the typical process of sending the contract out for competitive bids. The $2.5 million contract is under investigation by the Lincoln Police Department.
Pillen’s team has said Bushell helped the state access hundreds of millions in federal money. Foley has argued the money could’ve been accessed without her firm’s help. The Pillen administration ended up testifying in support of Foley’s push for the extra copy.
On Thursday, Foley said he was grateful for Anderson and the Legislature. He said the change would give state agencies some “pause” in thinking about using the no-bid contract process, because they know that copies would be sent to the auditor.
Andersen said “side-stepping the [bidding] process can erode public trust.”
“The competitive bidding process is a foundational component of some government operations … It ensures not only open and fair competition but was designed to ensure the best product or the best price,” Andersen said. “It is the obligation of government officials to be good stewards of taxpayer funds.”
State Sen. John Cavanaugh of Omaha credited the Examiner’s reporting on DED’s no-bid contract, saying that extra copies won’t “solve that problem happening, but it will ensure that the auditor knows about no-bid contracts before they get to a year down the line.”
Ballard supported this week’s floor amendment and said after the vote that he wasn’t phased by his city elections proposal not being included.
This story is provided by States Newsroom, a nonprofit state news network and Blox Digital content partner.
