Continuing implementation of Nebraska Legislative Bill 572 will include the waivable citations for statute violations which becomes effective November 1, 2021.
The citations will be used for several situations including sale, slaughter or disposal of a live animal or carcass without inspections; transportation of live animals without proper documentation inside the brand area; or movement of livestock outside the brand area without inspection.
These infractions will be issued by law enforcement staff only. The Investigator can fine per offense or as a whole based on the situation. If an infraction is observed during a routine inspection, the Inspector files a violation form with the Investigator in that area that allows them to then research the situation before creating a citation. Per the statute the fine shall not exceed $200 per head for each offense.
Waivable citations are much like traffic tickets in that you can opt to pay the fine and waive a court date. If you believe the citation was given erroneously the complainant has the right to appear in the county court where the violation was issued. A date will be set, and the case will be heard before a judge.
The most commonly reported violations are sales without inspection, which includes such standard transactions as neighbors selling to neighbors without them being inspected.
These citations will replace a large percent of the current violation forms that are filled out by the Investigators and then submitted to County Attorneys for them to decide to take on the case or not.
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The Nebraska Brand Committee is the state agency responsible for recording individual livestock brands, inspecting livestock at transfer of ownership and movements into and out of the brand area, as well as investigating missing and stolen cattle and violations of the Nebraska Brand Law. NBC inspected over 3.7 million head of cattle in fiscal year 2020-2021 with 80 staff and was established to protect the assets of Nebraska Cattle producers since 1941.
