LINCOLN — Gov. Pete Ricketts drew fire from the state teachers union Wednesday over his explanation for not recognizing “I Love Public Schools Day” last week.
At a Monday press conference, the governor said he had not signed a proclamation because “typically our proclamations on education focus on educational excellence and choice.”
Ricketts commented shortly after proclaiming the current week as “Nebraska School Choice Week” and extolling his initiatives to put more state money toward Nebraska’s private and parochial schools. School choice week is observed nationally to promote alternatives to traditional K-12 public schools.
In a Wednesday opinion column, Jenni Benson, president of the Nebraska State Education Association, called the governor’s comments “offensive and wrong-headed.”
“Nebraska public schools clearly do, in fact, provide both excellence and choice,” she said.
Benson said his remarks were “hurtful” to the thousands of students, teachers and other Nebraskans working in public schools and “demeaning, coming from an official who is elected to serve every Nebraskan.”
In her column, she pointed to other instances in which she said Ricketts demeaned and disrespected public schools. They included the governor referring to “government schools” when endorsing a property tax cap last year and his refusal to sign a proclamation honoring NSEA’s 150th anniversary.
Taylor Gage, the governor’s spokesman, disputed those assertions. In a series of tweets, he said Ricketts supports strong public schools, as demonstrated by his proposal to put a record $1.1 billion into the state’s school aid formula. Gage said the governor has regularly supported full funding for the formula.
He pointed as well to proclamations that the governor has issued in honor of public schools, such as those in 2017 that honored Blue Ribbon Schools.
In his tweets, Gage criticized “I Love Public Schools Day,” saying it was “named after a lobby group that consistently opposes education for low income families in the Legislature.” In a later statement, he cautioned against “conflating the union’s political goals and what’s best for the students and families of Nebraska.”
The day, which was observed on Jan. 20, has ties to Nebraska Loves Public Schools, an organization founded in 2011 “to change the persistent, negative narrative about public schools.” An organization spokeswoman said the group does not participate in lobbying.
The controversy arose as Nebraska lawmakers heard testimony about Ricketts’ proposal to cap the growth of property taxes going to public schools and other local governments at 3% annually. The governor spoke in favor of the proposed constitutional amendment as a needed step to curb tax increases. The NSEA opposed it, saying the measure would limit the ability of schools to meet the educational needs of children.
The two will be at odds again Thursday when the Revenue Committee hears Legislative Bill 364, which would provide tax credits for people who donate to private school scholarship funds.
The bill, introduced by State Sen. Lou Ann Linehan of Elkhorn, would start with $10 million a year for credits, with the amount growing over time. Ricketts left room in his budget plan to provide $2 million a year of such credits, saying the money would help low-income children have the same types of choices in schools as their better-off peers. He said he would support more if Linehan can get legislative approval for more.
The NSEA opposes the measure, which Benson called a “tax dodge.” Public school advocates have said it will mean less state funds available to support public schools.

Nebraska has 49 state senators in the Legislature. Click through to find your state senator and others.

State Sen. Julie Slama
District: 1
From: Peru
Party: Republican

State Sen. Robert Clements
District: 2
From: Elmwood
Party: Republican

State Sen. Carol Blood
District: 3
From: Bellevue
Party: Democratic

State Sen. Robert Hilkemann
District: 4
From: Omaha
Party: Republican

State Sen. Mike McDonnell
District: 5
From: Omaha
Party: Democratic

State Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh
District: 6
From: Omaha
Party: Democratic

State Sen. Tony Vargas
District: 7
From: Omaha
Party: Democratic

State Sen. Megan Hunt
District: 8
From: Omaha
Party: Democratic

State Sen. John Cavanaugh
District: 9
From: Omaha
Party: Democratic

State Sen. Wendy DeBoer
District: 10
From: Bennington
Party: Democratic

State Sen. Terrell McKinney
District: 11
From: Omaha
Party: Democratic

State Sen. Steve Lathrop
District: 12
From: Omaha
Party: Democratic

State Sen. Justin Wayne
District: 13
From: Omaha
Party: Democratic

State Sen. John Arch
District: 14
From: La Vista
Party: Republican

State Sen. Lynne Walz
District: 15
From: Fremont
Party: Democratic

State Sen. Ben Hansen
District: 16
From: Blair
Party: Republican

State Sen. Joni Albrecht
District: 17
From: Thurston
Party: Republican

State Sen. Brett Lindstrom
District: 18
From: Omaha
Party: Republican

State Sen. Mike Flood
District: 19
From: Norfolk
Party: Republican

State Sen. John McCollister
District: 20
From: Omaha
Party: Republican

State Sen. Mike Hilgers
District: 21
From: Lincoln
Party: Republican

State Sen. Mike Moser
District: 22
From: Columbus
Party: Republican

State Sen. Bruce Bostelman
District: 23
From: Brainard
Party: Republican

State Sen. Mark Kolterman
District: 24
From: Seward
Party: Republican

State Sen. Suzanne Geist
District: 25
From: Lincoln
Party: Republican

State Sen. Matt Hansen
District: 26
From: Lincoln
Party: Democratic

State Sen. Anna Wishart
District: 27
From: Lincoln
Party: Democratic

State Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks
District: 28
From: Lincoln
Party: Democratic

State Sen. Eliot Bostar
District: 29
From: Lincoln
Party: Democratic

State Sen. Myron Dorn
District: 30
From: Adams
Party: Republican

State Sen. Rich Pahls
District: 31
From: Omaha
Party: Republican

State Sen. Tom Brandt
District: 32
From: Plymouth
Party: Republican

State Sen. Steve Halloran
District: 33
From: Hastings
Party: Republican

State Sen. Curt Friesen
District: 34
From: Henderson
Party: Republican

State Sen. Raymond Aguilar
District: 35
From: Grand Island
Party: Republican

State Sen. Matt Williams
District: 36
From: Gothenburg
Party: Republican

State Sen. John Lowe
District: 37
From: Kearney
Party: Republican

State Sen. Dave Murman
District: 38
From: Glenvil
Party: Republican

State Sen. Lou Ann Linehan
District: 39
From: Elkhorn
Party: Republican

State Sen. Tim Gragert
District: 40
From: Creighton
Party: Republican

State Sen. Tom Briese
District: 41
From: Albion
Party: Republican

State Sen. Mike Groene
District: 42
From: North Platte
Party: Republican

State Sen. Tom Brewer
District: 43
From: Gordon
Party: Republican

State Sen. Dan Hughes
District: 44
From: Venango
Party: Republican

State Sen. Rita Sanders
District: 45
From: Bellevue
Party: Republican

State Sen. Adam Morfeld
District: 46
From: Lincoln
Party: Democratic

State Sen. Steve Erdman
District: 47
From: Bayard
Party: Republican

State Sen. John Stinner
District: 48
From: Gering
Party: Republican

State Sen. Jen Day
District: 49
From: Omaha
Party: Democratic
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