GRAND ISLAND — Nebraska voters have the opportunity to correct an 1875 law that has placed severe restrictions on local public endowments.
This antiquated legislation was put into effect as the result of failed railroad investments that harmed townships at that time. The law required local public endowments to be placed into a savings account or bond investment rather than more attractive mixe-portfolio investments. As a result, municipal endowment funds have lost millions of dollars over the years as the investments have languished in underperforming savings accounts or low-interest bonds.
Voting for Amendment One on Tuesday's ballot would be a would allow the local endowments, typically funded when a town sells land or a building, to join the modern investment arena.
There is no downside to this amendment. It would liberate millions of dollars in underutilized endowment funds and allow them to be invested in more dynamic funds that would grow the endowments more quickly.
We encourage Central Nebraska voters to resoundly support the measure Tuesday and vote YES on Amendment One.
