Protest-Inspired Print Exhibit Opens, City Council Passes Mask Mandate, Protesters Call for Cuts to Police Budget and More Top Local News for Wednesday, August 12

• Protesters called for a cut to the proposed 2021 police budget outside the city council meeting.
• The Omaha City Council voted unanimously to pass an emergency ordinance to mandate masks.
• Papillion-La Vista and Ralston Public Schools’ superintendents were encouraged by the social distancing practices they saw in their schools during the first day of in-person classes.
• Omaha and Bellevue are offering a handful of debris drop-off sites until Thursday and Friday this week to help the cleanup process after Monday’s wind storm.
• Omaha residents made their cases both for and against masks to the city council during yesterday’s four-hour hearing.
• The Douglas County Commissioners have designated $10 million in CARES Act funds to assist Omaha’s entertainment industry.
• Local sports bar owners are concerned for their businesses’ futures after taking a hit from the pandemic and the Big Ten postponing football in the fall, their biggest money making season.

Around the State

• The Big Ten commissioner said that Nebraska cannot remain a member of the conference if the team plays football this fall instead of waiting for the postponed spring season.
• Nebraska’s anti-bias agency will begin investigating instances of discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in the workplace and when looking for housing.
• The Nebraska Legislature advanced bills compromising on taxes and banning a method of second trimester abortion to the last round of voting before being sent to Governor Pete Ricketts.