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Nebraska

*** Shopping-Tip: Nebraska
{{Otheruses1|the U.S. State}} {{US state | Name = Nebraska | Fullname = State of Nebraska | Flag = Nebraska state flag.png | Flaglink = Flag of Nebraska | Seal = Nebraskastateseal.jpg | Map = Map_of_USA_highlighting_Nebraska.png | Nickname = Cornhusker State | Capital = Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln | OfficialLang = English language English | LargestCity = Omaha, Nebraska Omaha | Governor = Dave Heineman (R)| Senators = Chuck Hagel (R)
Ben Nelson (D) | PostalAbbreviation = NE | AreaRank = 16^th | TotalArea = 200,520 | LandArea = 199,099 | WaterArea = 1,247 | PCWater = 0.7 | PopRank = 38^th | 2000Pop = 1,711,263 | DensityRank = 42^nd | 2000Density = 8.6 | AdmittanceOrder = 37^th | AdmittanceDate = March 1, 1867 | TimeZone = Central Standard Time Zone Central: UTC-6/Daylight saving time -5 (eastern)
Mountain Standard Time Zone Mountain: UTC-7/Daylight saving time -6 (western)| Latitude = 40Â°N to 43Â°N | Longitude = 95Â°25'W to 104Â°W | Width = 340 | Length = 690 | HighestElev = 1,653 | MeanElev = 790 | LowestElev = 256 | ISOCode = US-NE | Website = www.nebraska.gov | }} '''Nebraska''' is a Great Plains U.S. state state of the United States.

Geography
{{further|List of counties in Nebraska and List of Nebraska rivers}} Image:National-atlas-nebraska.PNG thumb|Map of Nebraska Nebraska is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa and Missouri to the east, across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwest; and Wyoming to the west. Nebraska has List of counties in Nebraska 93 counties; it also occupies the central portion of the Frontier Strip. Nebraska is composed of two major land regions: the Dissected Till Plains and the Great Plains. The easternmost portion of the state was scoured by Ice Age glaciers; the Dissected Till Plains were left behind after the glaciers retreated. The Dissected Till Plains is a region of gently rolling hills; Omaha, Nebraska Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln are located within this region. The Great Plains occupy the majority of western Nebraska. The Great Plains itself is comprised of several smaller, diverse land regions, including the Sandhills (Nebraska) Sandhills, the Pine Ridge (region) Pine Ridge, the Rainwater Basin, the High Plains (United States) High Plains and the Wildcat Hills. Panorama Point, at 5,424 feet (1,653 m), is the highest point in Nebraska; despite its name and elevation, it is merely a low rise near the Colorado and Wyoming borders. A past Nebraska tourism slogan was "Where the West Begins"; locations given for the beginning of the "West" include the Missouri River, the intersection of 13th and O Streets in Lincoln (where it is marked by a red brick star), the 100th meridian west 100th meridian, and Chimney Rock National Historic Site Chimney Rock. Areas under the management of the National Park Service include: *Agate Fossil Beds National Monument near Harrison, Nebraska Harrison *California National Historic Trail *Chimney Rock National Historic Site near Bayard, Nebraska Bayard *Homestead National Monument of America in Beatrice, Nebraska Beatrice *Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail *Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail *Niobrara National Scenic River near Valentine, Nebraska Valentine *Oregon National Historic Trail *Pony Express National Historic Trail *Scotts Bluff National Monument at Gering, Nebraska Gering

Climate
Two major climates are represented in Nebraska: the eastern two-thirds of the state has a continental climate hot summer continental climate, and the western third of the state has a semiarid steppe climate. The entire state experiences wide seasonal variations in temperature and precipitation. Average temperatures are fairly uniform across Nebraska, while average annual precipitation decreases from about 31.5 inches (800 mm) in the southeast corner of the state to about 13.8 inches (350 mm) in the Nebraska Panhandle Panhandle. Snowfall across the state is fairly even, with most of Nebraska receiving between 25 and 35 inches (650 to 900 mm) of snow annually. [http://www.hprcc.unl.edu/products/atlas.html] Nebraska is located in Tornado Alley; thunderstorms are common in the spring and summer months. The chinook winds from the Rocky Mountains provide a temporary moderating effect on temperatures in western Nebraska during the winter months. ([http://www.nebraskaclimateoffice.unl.edu/weather.summary.Dec99], [http://www.tcdne.org/climate.htm])

History
The Kansas-Nebraska Act became law on May 30, 1854; it established the political divisions of the United States U.S. territories of Nebraska and Kansas. The territorial capital of Nebraska was Omaha, Nebraska Omaha. In the 1860s, the first great wave of Homestead Act homesteaders poured into Nebraska to claim free land granted by the federal government. Many of the first farm settlers built their homes out of sod because they found so few trees on the grassy land. Nebraska became the 37th state in 1867, shortly after the American Civil War. At that time, the capital was moved from Omaha, Nebraska Omaha to Lancaster, later renamed Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln after the recently assassinated President of the United States Abraham Lincoln. Arbor Day began in Nebraska, and the National Arbor Day Foundation is still headquartered in Nebraska City, Nebraska Nebraska City. Prohibition in the U.S. was adopted in 1918, with Nebraska as the thirty-sixth state necessary to make the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution [http://www.rootsweb.com/~neresour/OLLibrary/Journals/HPR/Vol06/nhrv06pc.html].

Demographics
{| class="toccolours" align="right" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" style="margin:0 0 1em 1em; font-size: 95%;" |- ! colspan=2 bgcolor="#ccccff" align="center"| Historical populations |- ! align="center"| Census
year !! align="right"| Population |- | colspan=2|

|- | align="center"| 1860 || align="right"| 28,841 |- | align="center"| 1870 || align="right"| 122,993 |- | align="center"| 1880 || align="right"| 452,402 |- | align="center"| 1890 || align="right"| 1,062,656 |- | align="center"| 1900 || align="right"| 1,066,300 |- | align="center"| 1910 || align="right"| 1,192,214 |- | align="center"| 1920 || align="right"| 1,296,372 |- | align="center"| 1930 || align="right"| 1,377,963 |- | align="center"| 1940 || align="right"| 1,315,834 |- | align="center"| 1950 || align="right"| 1,325,510 |- | align="center"| 1960 || align="right"| 1,411,330 |- | align="center"| 1970 || align="right"| 1,483,493 |- | align="center"| 1980 || align="right"| 1,569,825 |- | align="center"| 1990 || align="right"| 1,578,385 |- | align="center"| United States 2000 Census 2000 || align="right"| 1,711,263 |} As of 2005, Nebraska has an estimated population of 1,758,787, which is an increase of 11,083, or 0.6%, from the prior year and an increase of 47,522, or 2.8%, since the year 2000. This includes a natural increase since the last census of 52,104 people (that is 132,394 births minus 80,290 deaths) and a decrease due to net migration of 4,007 people out of the state. Immigration from outside the United States resulted in a net increase of 22,199 people, and migration within the country produced a net loss of 26,206 people. Image:Nebraska_population_map.png thumb|Nebraska Population Density Map As of 2004, the population of Nebraska included about 84,000 foreign-born residents (4.8% of the population).

Race and ancestry
The racial makeup of the state and comparison to the prior census: {{Racial_demographics_begin | year1=2000 | year2=1990 }} {{Racial_demographics_White | year1=89.6% | year2=93.8% }} {{Racial_demographics_Black | year1=4.0% | year2=3.6% }} {{Racial_demographics_Asian | year1=1.3% | year2=0.8% }} {{Racial_demographics_Amerindian | year1=0.9% | year2=0.8% }} {{Racial_demographics_Other | race=Other race | year1=2.8% | year2=1.0% }} {{Racial_demographics_Mixed | year1=1.4% | year2=* }} {{Racial_demographics_Hispanic | year1White=87.3% | year2White=92.5% | year1Hispanic=5.5% | year2Hispanic=2.3% }} {{Racial_demographics_end}} The five largest ancestry groups in Nebraska are German American German (38.6%), Irish American Irish (12.4%), British American English (9.6%), Swedish American Swedish (4.9%), and Czech Republic Czech (4.9%). Nebraska has the largest Czech-American population (as a percentage of the total population) in the nation. German-Americans are the largest ancestry group in most of the state, particularly in the eastern counties. Thurston County (comprised entirely of the Omaha (tribe) Omaha and Winnebago (tribe) Winnebago reservations) has an Native Americans in the United States Indian majority, and Butler County, Nebraska Butler County is one of only two counties in the nation with a Czech-American plurality.

Rural flight
Nebraska, in common with five other Midwest states (Kansas, Oklahoma, North Dakota North and South Dakota, and Iowa), has experienced a decades-long population decline in rural areas, although Nebraska is the fastest declining of the six.{{citationneeded}} Eighty-nine percent of the cities in those states have fewer than 3000 people; hundreds have fewer than 1000. Between 1996 and 2004, almost half a million people, nearly half with college degrees, left the six states. "''Rural flight''", as it is called, has led to offers of free land and tax breaks as enticements to newcomers. As an example in Nebraska, Monowi, Nebraska Monowi, which in the 1930s had a population of 150, now has a population of one (as of 2006).

Religion
The religious affiliations of the people of Nebraska are shown in the table below: *Christianity Christian – 90% **Protestantism Protestant – 61% ***Lutheranism Lutheran – 16% ***Methodism Methodist – 11% ***Baptist – 9% ***Presbyterianism Presbyterian – 4% ***Other Protestant – 21% **Roman Catholicism in the United States Roman Catholic – 28% **Other Christian – 1% *Other religions – 1% *Non-religious – 9%

Economy
Image:wiki_nebraska.jpg thumb|275px|"Greetings from Nebraska" stamp. The [http://www.bea.gov/ Bureau of Economic Analysis] estimates of Nebraska's gross state product in 2004 was $68 billion. Per capita personal income in 2004 was $31,339, 25th in the nation. Once considered part of the Great American Desert, it is now a leading agriculture farming state. Nebraskans have practiced scientific farming to turn the Nebraska prairie into a land of ranches and farms. Much of the history of the state is the story of the impact of the Nebraska farmer. Nebraska has a large agriculture sector, and is a national leader in the production of beef, pork, maize corn (maize), and soybeans. Other important economic sectors include freight transport (by Rail transport rail and truck), manufacturing, telecommunications, information technology, and insurance. Nebraska has 4 personal income tax brackets, ranging from 2.56 percent to 6.84 percent. Nebraska has a state sales tax of 5.5 percent. In addition to the state tax, some Nebraska cities assess a city sales and use tax, up to a maximum of 1.5 percent. All real property located within the state of Nebraska is taxable unless specifically exempted by statute. Since 1992, only depreciable personal property is subject to tax and all other personal property is exempt from tax. Inheritance tax is collected at the county level.

Transportation

Railroads
{{further|List of Nebraska railroads}} Nebraska has a rich railroad history. The Union Pacific Railroad, headquartered in Omaha, was incorporated on July 1, 1862, in the wake of the Pacific Railway Acts Pacific Railway Act of 1862. The route of the First Transcontinental Railroad original transcontinental railroad runs through the state. Other major railroads with operations in the state are: Amtrak; BNSF Railway; Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad; and Iowa Interstate Railroad.

Roads and highways
{{further|List of Nebraska numbered highways}} The '''Interstate Highways''' in Nebraska are: *Interstate 76 (west) 76, Interstate 80 80, Interstate 129 129, Interstate 180 (Nebraska) 180, Interstate 480 (Iowa-Nebraska) 480, Interstate 680 (Iowa-Nebraska) 680 The '''U.S. Route system U.S. Routes''' in Nebraska are: *U.S. Route 6 6, U.S. Route 20 20, U.S. Route 26 26, U.S. Route 30 30, U.S. Route 34 34, U.S. Route 73 73, U.S. Route 75 75, U.S. Route 77 77, U.S. Route 81 81, U.S. Route 83 83, U.S. Route 136 136, U.S. Route 138 138, U.S. Route 159 159, U.S. Route 183 183, U.S. Route 275 275, U.S. Route 281 281, U.S. Route 283 283, U.S. Route 385 385

Law and government
{{wikisourcepar|Nebraska Constitution}} Nebraska's government operates under the framework of the Nebraska Constitution, adopted in 1875 and is divided into three branches: executive, legislative, and judicial.

Executive branch
{{further|Governor of Nebraska}} The head of the executive branch is the List of Governors of Nebraska Governor; the current governor of Nebraska is Dave Heineman. Other elected officials in the executive branch are the Lieutenant Governor (elected on the same ticket as the Governor), the Attorney General, the Secretary of State, the State Treasurer, and the State Auditor. All elected officials in the executive branch serve four-year terms.

Legislative branch
{{further|Nebraska Legislature and Nebraska State Capitol}} Nebraska is the only state in the United States with a unicameral legislature; that is, a legislature with only one house. Although this house is officially known simply as the "Legislature", and more commonly called the "Unicameral", its members still call themselves "senators". Nebraska's Legislature is also the only one in the United States that is nonpartisan system nonpartisan. The senators are elected with no party affiliation next to their names on the ballot, and the speaker and committee chairs are chosen at large, so that members of any party can be (and often are) chosen for these positions. The Nebraska legislature can also override a governor's veto with a three-fifths majority, in contrast to the two-thirds majority required in some other states. The Nebraska Legislature meets in the third Nebraska State Capitol building, built between 1922 and 1932. {|{{US state insignia | Name = Nebraska | StateMotto = ''Equality Before the Law'' | StateSlogan = ''Nebraska, possibilities...endless'' | StateBird = Western meadowlark | StateAnimal = White-tailed deer | StateFish = Channel catfish | StateInsect = Honeybee | StateFlower = Goldenrod | StateTree = Cottonwood | StateSong = "Beautiful Nebraska" | Fossil=show | StateFossil = Mammoth | FolkDance=Show | StateFolkDance = Square dance | Gemstone=Show | StateGemstone = Chalcedony Blue agate | Mineral=Hide | Rock=Show | StateRock = Agate Prairie agate | Grass=Show | StateGrass = Little bluestem | Tartan=Hide | Butterfly=Hide | Amphibian=Hide | Colors=Hide | Stone=Hide | Soil=Show | StateSoil = Holdrege series | Beverage=Show | StateBeverage = Milk | DomesticatedAnimal=Hide | Furbearer=Hide | Game=Hide | Reptile=Hide | Wildflower=Hide | MusicalInstrument=Hide | Waltz=Hide | QuarterRelease = To be released in 2006 }} |- style="vertical-align:top;" |'''List of U.S. state dances Folk dance''' || Square dance |- |'''List of U.S. state minerals, rocks, stones and gemstones Gemstone''' || Chalcedony Blue agate |- |'''List of U.S. state minerals, rocks, stones and gemstones Rock''' || Agate Prairie agate |- |'''List of U.S. state grass Grass''' || Little bluestem |- |'''List of U.S. state soils Soil''' || Holdrege series |- |'''List of U.S. state beverages Beverage''' || Milk |- {{US state quarter | Name = Nebraska| Image = Nebraska quarter, reverse side, 2006.jpg | ReleaseDate = To be released in 2006 }} |} For years, United States Senate United States Senator George Norris and other Nebraskans encouraged the idea of a unicameral legislature, and demanded the issue be decided in a referendum. Norris argued: :â€¦The constitutions of our various states are built upon the idea that there is but one class. If this be true, there is no sense or reason in having the same thing done twice, especially if it is to be done by two bodies of men elected in the same way and having the same jurisdiction. Unicameral supporters also argued that a bicameralism bicameral legislature had a significant undemocratic feature in the committees that reconciled Assembly and Senate legislation. Votes in these committees were secretive, and would sometimes add provisions to bills that neither house had approved. Nebraska's unicameral legislature today has rules that bills can contain only one subject, and must be given at least five days of consideration. Finally, in 1934, due in part to the budgetary pressure of the Great Depression, Nebraska's unicameral legislature was put in place by a state initiative. In effect, the Assembly (the house) was abolished; as noted, today's Nebraska state legislators are commonly referred to as "Senators."

Judicial branch
{{further|Nebraska Supreme Court}} The judicial system in Nebraska is unified, with the Nebraska Supreme Court having administrative authority over all Nebraska courts. Nebraska uses the Missouri Plan for the selection of judges at all levels. The lowest courts in Nebraska are the county courts, which are grouped into 12 districts (containing one or more counties); above those are 12 district courts. The Court of Appeals hears appeals from the district courts, juvenile courts, and workers' compensation courts. The Nebraska Supreme Court is the final court of appeal. Nebraska allows for Capital punishment in the United States capital punishment; the sole method of execution is the electric chair.

Federal government representation
{{further|U.S. Congressional Delegations from Nebraska}} Nebraska's two United States Senate U.S. senators are Chuck Hagel (Republican) and Ben Nelson (Democrat). Nebraska has three representatives in the United States House of Representatives House are: Jeff Fortenberry (R, United States House of Representatives, Nebraska District 1 1st District); Lee Terry (R, United States House of Representatives, Nebraska District 2 2nd District); and Tom Osborne (Nebraska) Tom Osborne (R, United States House of Representatives, Nebraska District 3 3rd District). Since 1991, two of Nebraska's five U.S. Electoral College electoral votes are awarded based on the winner of the statewide election; the other three go to the highest vote-getter in each of the state's three congressional districts.

Nebraska politics
{{further|Nebraska gubernatorial election, 2006 and Nebraska United States Senate election, 2006}} For most of its history, Nebraska has been a solidly United States Republican Party Republican state. Republicans have carried the state in all but one presidential election since 1940—the 1964 landslide election of Lyndon Johnson. In the U.S. presidential election, 2004 2004 presidential election, George W. Bush won the state's five electoral votes by a 33% margin of (the fourth-most Republican vote among states) with 65.9% of the overall vote; only Thurston County, Nebraska Thurston County, which includes two American Indian reservations, voted for John Kerry. Despite the current Republican domination of Nebraska politics, the state has a long tradition of electing centrist members of both parties to state and federal office; examples include George Norris (who served his last few years in the Senate as an independent), J. James Exon, and Bob Kerrey. This tradition is illustrated by Nebraska's current U. S. senators: Chuck Hagel is considered a maverick within his party, while Ben Nelson is the most conservative member of his party in the Senate.

Important cities and towns
All population figures are 2004 United States Census Bureau Census Bureau estimates.

Largest cities
{|- !align="left"|100,000+ population !align="left" colspan="2"|10,000+ population |- |valign=top| *Omaha, Nebraska Omaha - 409,416 *Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln - 236,146 |valign=top| *Bellevue, Nebraska Bellevue - 47,347 *Grand Island, Nebraska Grand Island - 44,287 *Kearney, Nebraska Kearney - 28,640 *Fremont, Nebraska Fremont - 25,272 *Norfolk, Nebraska Norfolk - 24,072 *North Platte, Nebraska North Platte - 23,944 *Hastings, Nebraska Hastings - 23,404 |valign=top| *Columbus, Nebraska Columbus - 20,881 *Papillion, Nebraska Papillion - 19,497 *Scottsbluff, Nebraska Scottsbluff - 14,767 *La Vista, Nebraska La Vista - 14,685 *Beatrice, Nebraska Beatrice - 12,963 *South Sioux City, Nebraska South Sioux City - 12,142 *Lexington, Nebraska Lexington - 10,056 |}

Urban areas
{|- !align="left"|Metropolitan areas !align="left" colspan="2"|Micropolitan areas |- |valign=top| *Omaha-Council Bluffs metropolitan area Omaha-Council Bluffs - 683,705 (Nebraska portion) *Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln - 275,820 *Sioux City, Iowa - 26,722 (Nebraska portion) |valign=top| *Grand Island, Nebraska Grand Island - 69,685 *Kearney, Nebraska Kearney - 50,286 *Norfolk, Nebraska Norfolk - 49,964 *Hastings, Nebraska Hastings - 37,691 *Scottsbluff, Nebraska Scottsbluff - 37,393 |valign=top| *North Platte, Nebraska North Platte - 36,213 *Fremont, Nebraska Fremont - 36,066 *Columbus, Nebraska Columbus - 31,245 *Lexington, Nebraska Lexington - 26,566 *Beatrice, Nebraska Beatrice - 23,436 |} '''Other areas''' *Grand Island, Hastings and Kearney comprise the â€œTri-Citiesâ€? area. *The northeast corner of Nebraska is part of the Siouxland region.

Education

Colleges and universities

'''University of Nebraska system''' * University of Nebraska-Lincoln * University of Nebraska at Kearney * University of Nebraska at Omaha * University of Nebraska Medical Center * Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture '''Nebraska State College System''' * Chadron State College * Peru State College * Wayne State College

'''Private colleges/universities''' * Bellevue University * Clarkson College * College of Saint Mary * Concordia University, Seward Concordia University * Creighton University * Dana College * Doane College * Grace University * Hastings College * Midland Lutheran College * Nebraska Christian College * Nebraska Methodist College * Nebraska Wesleyan University * Platte Valley Bible College * Union College of Lincoln Union College * York College (Nebraska) York College

'''Nebraska Community College Association''' * Central Community College * Little Priest Tribal College * Metropolitan Community College * Mid-Plains Community College * Nebraska Indian Community College * Northeast Community College * Southeast Community College * Western Nebraska Community College