Article excerpts:
“The Nebraska legislature amended the feedlot brand bill again on May 21, 2025, and this might not be the final change.
Although it was rumored that the contentious bill might not be brought up again with the legislative session nearing the end, it was in fact scheduled for floor debate May 21, 2025. A new, unexpected amendment was offered that day and passed by a voice vote.
After multiple amendments and conversations about optional language, the Nebraska unicameral approved AM 1558 which essentially makes three changes to the current Nebraska brand law.
- Lowers the fees for Registered Feedlots (RFLs) from the current fee of $1 per head calculated on one-time capacity to $.50 per head based on one-time capacity
- Raises the cap for the brand inspection fee to $1.50.
- Exempts qualified dairies from brand inspection
Ibach told TSLN that she might propose yet another amendment. She would like to see an exemption for cattle that enter a growyard or feedyard but do not change ownership. Currently when cattle enter a growyard or a feedyard they must be inspected even if no change of ownership occurs. Ibach would like to see this amended to require no more than one inspection, and for cattle that come into the inspection area from a non-inspection area (such as cattle entering the Nebraska inspection area from Kansas), health paperwork or other paperwork should be sufficient to supplant the current required inspection, she believes.
“If there is a one-time inspection into the background lot and feedlots can show proof of ownership from then on, they should not be required, in my opinion, to continually obtain inspections,” she said.”
Read more: HERE