Senate passes bill to save homes at two southwest Nebraska lakes

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — The U.S. Senate passed a bill on Monday aimed at saving some lakeside homes in southwest Nebraska.

The bill would transfer the Bureau of Reclamation land at the Swanson and Red Willow reservoirs to local governments.

Sen. Deb Fischer, who sponsored the legislation, said the federal government was planning to evict those living on the lakes.

“In two months, the federal government will force Swanson and Red Willow Reservoir residents to leave, destroying the communities and small businesses these Nebraskans have built over the last 50 years,” she said in a press release. “Thankfully, today Congress has agreed to right this wrong by transferring control of this land back to local officials.

The bill would give Hitchcock County control of the land at Swanson Reservoir. Frontier County would control the land at Red Willow Reservoir.

The boards of both counties thanked Congress for “acting to secure a future” for the lakeside residents.

A companion bill already passed the House, so it will go straight to President Joe Biden’s desk.