LINCOLN — The Nebraska Legislature will not meet Tuesday because of the coronavirus, and no date has been set to reconvene.

Speaker of the Legislature Jim Scheer made the call Monday morning, which previously had been scheduled as an off day. He said he consulted with the chairman of the Legislature’s Executive Board, public health officials and Gov. Pete Ricketts on the decision.

“We have made this decision primarily for the health and safety of the state and to protect the health of the members in the body,” he said.

The decision was made after the governor and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended against gatherings of more than 50 people. The Legislature itself has 49 members, but necessary staff members push the number higher. The Legislature also attracts lobbyists, media and members of the public to the State Capitol.

Federal guidance now calls for gatherings to be limited to 10 people, and Ricketts later Monday changed his guidance to match that.

Many of the 49 state senators are in high-risk groups, either because of age or medical conditions such as heart disease, lung disease or diabetes. Three were absent on Thursday because of illness, including one senator who was hospitalized and another who was at home with pneumonia.

Tuesday was to have been the 41st day of the 60-day session. Lawmakers have yet to finish the state budget or address many other issues, including property tax changes and a business tax incentive measure.

Scheer said lawmakers may need to return to approve an emergency appropriation for the state’s efforts to deal with COVID-19 and the virus that causes it. If so, they could be called back as soon as Monday.

While the State Constitution specifies the day that legislative sessions are to begin, it does not address when they must end. However, the state fiscal year starts July 1, and problems could crop up if the budget is not passed by then.

The Legislature has not had a similar suspension within memory. Lawmakers did, however, take an unplanned six-day recess in May 1985 to give the Appropriations Committee more time to find budget cuts.