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NDVA 2021 Year in Review
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2021 proved to be just as
challenging of a year as 2020, with the continuing pandemic, worldwide
staffing shortages, and plenty of other challenges. Here at team NDVA,
however, we did not let that get in the way of our work and have several
success stories from across the agency we would like to share. These are just
a few of the great things we accomplished over the last year. |
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LB 387 Signed into Law
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In May, Governor Ricketts
signed LB 387 into law, which will exempt 100% of military retirement pay
from income tax starting with the 2022 tax year. This bill built on the 50%
military retirement pay tax exemption created through LB 153, which was
signed into law in 2020. Getting these bills across the finish line was a
team effort from across the veteran community, and we want to thank everyone
who helped make this a reality. Our agency advocated for these bills and will
continue working to make Nebraska more veteran and military friendly. |
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Vets Get Pets Launches
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This year, we launched our
Vets Get Pets program, first with the new
license plate in January and then with the veteran
pet adoption fee program in July. To date, nearly 550 license plates have
been sold for a total of $8,415 to fund the program to pay for veterans’ pet
adoption fees. This year, we have helped ten veterans adopt pets. If you or
another veteran you know is interested in adopting a pet, consider utilizing
Vets Get Pets to have up to $350 of your fees covered! |
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Learn
More About Vets Get Pets
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Pay Increases at Veterans’ Homes
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In November, historic wage
increases were passed at the State of Nebraska, raising wages 20-30% for
positions like food service, maintenance and housekeeping, and nursing in
24/7 facilities, including our four veterans’ homes. This has made a
significant impact in our ability to combat the staffing challenges we have
been facing. Compared with this time last year, applications are up 87% at
the veterans’ homes! We’re still recruiting teammates for all four homes, so
please share our
recruitment video and/or employment
page with anyone you think would be interested in working at a state
veterans’ home. |
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Learn
More About Working at NDVA
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NDVA Website Receives Multiple Awards
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The new NDVA website
launched in July 2020 with a host of exciting features like the Nebraska
Veterans’ Gateway, interactive CVSO
directory, virtual veteran service officer live chat, and more. The
improvements have earned the site recognition, and in 2021 it received several
awards: a dotCOMM Gold Award in the government category, a Davey Award for
outstanding creative work, and a MarCom Award for excellence in marketing and
communications. If you haven’t visited the new site and tried out some of the
features, visit it today! |
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Visit
Our Website
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Process Improvement Project of the Year
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At the Center of
Operational Excellence Summit in October, NDVA was recognized with the
process improvement project of the year for work the agency did to improve
our personal protective equipment (PPE) distribution process. PPE is vitally
important to our success in caring for and keeping our members safe from
COVID-19, so ensuring we have an accurate inventory and adequate supply of
PPE for each home is essential. Procurement Manager Christine Bellavia and
CNVH Business Manager Lance McKenney were honored with Admiralships for their
work on the project. |
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Teammate Recognition 2021
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Teammates from across NDVA
were honored during the state’s teammate recognition ceremonies.
Congratulations to all our teammates who were recognized for their years of
service milestones with an Excellence in State Service award, including
Director Hilgert with 20 years of service, and to NVH Director of Nursing
Lacey Moeller who received the Excellence in Leadership award. |
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That’s a Wrap
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These are just a few of our agency’s
success stories from the past year. We are looking forward to continuing our
work in 2022 as we grow the programs and benefits we already offer and add
new and innovative services to our arsenal. Our mission is to honor
Nebraska’s veterans and their families by providing excellent service,
assistance, and care through veterans’
services, our state
veterans’ homes, and our state
veterans cemetery. We will continue to do just that and want to thank you
for your support! If you haven’t yet, please
follow us on our social media channels to stay up to date on all the
happenings at NDVA |
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Please Note: License Plate Updates
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During this past
legislative session, LB 78 was signed into law, which made some changes to
the application process for four existing license plates. Beginning January 1, 2022, new
applicants for the Disabled American Veteran, Ex-Prisoner of War, Purple
Heart Combat Wounded, or Gold Star Family Plates must first register or
confirm their status with the Nebraska Veterans’ Registry. If
you are interested in any of the military honor plates, be sure to apply to
the Nebraska Veterans’ Registry first. |
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Apply
to the Nebraska Veterans’ Registry
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Wednesday, December 29, 2021
NDVA Newsletter - December 2021
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