Laws started with just a bright idea

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BY NANCY HICKS / Lincoln Journal Star

Once a year, you can fish without a license and get into a state park without a permit.

You can thank Todd Heyne.

Because of Larry Woodman, new all-terrain vehicles now must be titled by the state.

And drivers with disabilities can get handicapped license plates for their motorcycles because of Cathy Hayes.

Theirs are not household names, but many ordinary Nebraskans — like you — can take credit for having the idea, and the energy, that led to a law.

During his first summer working in Nevada, Todd Heyne and a buddy took advantage of the chance to spend a day fishing for largemouth bass at Sunnyside State Recreation Area without a license.

What a great idea, he thought.

Many western states used the free fishing day to promote tourism, encouraging people to return and spend money on licenses. In southern Utah, for instance, anglers came from Nevada, Arizona and California to fish for trout.

When he interned at the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, Heyne learned Nebraska didn't offer a similar free fishing day. Plus, he was told, creating a free fishing day would require a state law.

So he set off to change state law.

Heyne, president of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Wildlife Club, was plugged in politically. He had met state and federal elected leaders. He was on a state technical committee that worked on the 1995 Farm Bill. He had spent a day with Lincoln Sen. David Landis as part of a UNL leadership program.

Heyne took his idea to Laurel Marsh a member of Landis' staff. He then talked with Landis and testified at the bill's public hearing.

The measure passed in 1996 on a 40-0 vote.

But it wasn't without friction. During the process, the bill was broadened to create a state "open house," a day when people could enter parks without permits and fish without licenses.

Heyne thought the day ought to be in June, when kids were finished with school. But Game and Parks staff didn't want freebies between Memorial Day and Labor Day, when the agency makes the most money from fees.

So the day was set for the Saturday before Memorial Day. 

Free Fishing and Park Entry Day has been a success, with fishing derbies and clinics for kids. It's also created new park patrons, said Jim Carney of the Game and Parks Commission.

Heyne's current hectic life — he's an Omaha mail carrier, husband, father of a 4-year-old — leaves little room for political activity.

But he still fishes, and he knows that regular folks, with a little effort and a little knowledge, can make a difference.

"You know what is so empowering? There really is citizenship impact in Nebraska," he said. "Nebraska really does provide an opportunity for an average citizen to participate."

The sheriff told Larry Woodman he'd probably never see the two Honda ATVs stolen from his shed. Why? Nebraska did not title ATVs, so they could be sold easily.

Woodman, of rural Kenesaw, mentioned his idea — titling ATVs — to a former classmate and now state senator, Carroll Burling, who brought the idea to the Legislature in 2003.

It passed that year.

Since Jan. 1, the state has required titles for new ATVs and minibikes. It's also allowed owners of older models to get titles.

So far, the state has issued 1,869 titles.

When he made his suggestion, Woodman knew little about how laws were made. "I just knew someone who was a state senator."

He learned you don't have to be sophisticated about state government to make a difference. "I'd encourage anyone who has an idea to go ahead and approach a senator to see if they think it is worthy of becoming a law."

The farmer-rancher plans to use his state law this fall, when he will get his older ATVs titled. The folks at the courthouse needed a few months' experience titling new vehicles before tackling older ones, he said.

Cathy (Carver) Hayes wanted a handicapped plate for her motorcycle, a Honda with automatic shift and a sidecar for her wheelchair and service dog. She wanted to park in handicapped parking spots.

Because Nebraska law didn't allow such a thing, she took her idea to Landis' office.

"He just seemed accessible."

Landis agreed to sponsor a bill creating the new plate, something already allowed in neighboring states. Introduced in 1999, the bill passed the next year.

Hayes worked for the state Department of Education, so she knew a little about the legislative process. She spoke at the bill's public hearing and watched its progress.

Her idea, she said, was a "win-win situation."

It cost the state next to nothing and it satisfied a small need.

Still, there was opposition. Some people with disabilities opposed the plates because they didn't believe people with disabilities should drive motorcycles, Hayes said.

"My idea wasn't going to cost anyone anything. So it probably was easier to do," Hayes said.

"But if you want to get anything else passed involving money, it's tough. You have to go out and get support. You need a lot of backing," she said.

Hayes got one of the early license plates, but she wasn't fast enough to get No. 1. 

After marrying three years ago, she sold the bike on eBay for $1,800 to an Arizona man who wanted it for his mom, she said.

Last year, just four motorcycles had handicapped plates.

Senators get ideas from many directions. Paid lobbyists and unpaid representatives of special interest groups bring them. There's always model legislation from national groups.

Senators have their own brainstorms. And citizens also offer ideas that appeal to a senator.

Sen. Chris Beutler of Lincoln gets a half-dozen ideas a year from citizens. Of those, he may agree to sponsor one or two that affect a broad number of people in an area of interest to him.

Landis occasionally agrees to be the conduit into the legislative process for a citizen's idea. There has to be an interesting issue, a fair argument in support and broad application, he said. And the person has to be willing to work.

Constituents may hope they can call a senator, pitch an idea anonymously and then disappear, he said. But that's not how it works.

Senators usually expect a little help from those who think the bill is a good idea, including an appearance at the public hearing for that proposal.

"In the end, you have to explain how the bill will make a difference in people's lives. You have to step forward and answer questions from people who may think differently about the issue than you do."

Reach Nancy Hicks at 473-7250 or nhicks@journalstar.com.