LINCOLN- Gov. Pete Ricketts’ recent denial of federal rental assistance is the latest instance of the governor denying pandemic relief offered by the federal government.

From supplemental food assistance to expanded unemployment benefits, the governor has turned away millions of dollars in federal funding meant for Nebraskans in need, often based on the argument that it is time to return to pre-pandemic order, and often over the objections of some state lawmakers and advocates.

The latest example of Ricketts’ resistance to federal aid came Friday when the governor reaffirmed his decision not to apply for $120 million in rental assistance, after receiving pressure from the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Though a majority of that funding, about $72 million, will likely be distributed across Nebraska’s most populous counties, that still leaves about $48 million unavailable to renters.

Nebraska is the only state in the country that does not plan to apply for any of its second-round funding through the Emergency Rental Assistance Program.

“We have not been in a pandemic emergency since the summer of 2021,” said Ricketts.

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