HASTINGS, Neb. – The upcoming Nebraska Legislative session will feature 17 new state senators, including Dan Lonowski from District 33. 

The long-time Hastings resident has spent the better part of four decades as a teacher and coach, mostly at Adams Central Junior High School, but now finds himself representing 40,000 constituents in Adams, Kearney, and Phelps counties. 

Lonowski is taking over for Steve Halloran, who was term-limited after eight years of service. 

He says one bill he wants to introduce is to address the vaping epidemic that has taken a hold of thousands of underage kids in Nebraska and across the country.

According to the CDC, just under six percent of high school and middle school students used some form of e-cigarette in 2024, totaling about 1.63 million kids.

Lonowski says he wants to introduce a bill that limits vape and e-cigarette flavors in Nebraska.

"There are other states that have limited it to tobacco flavor and menthol flavor," said Lonowski. "I thought if we can steal their terminology and figure out how they went about getting that into effect, I think it will help curb the appetite of a lot of young kids and adults that seem to have taken to vaping."

One high energy bills last legislative session was Senator Kathleen Kauth’s ‘Sports and Spaces’ bill, which couldn’t overcome a filibuster late in the session and ultimately died.

It aimed to pass a law limiting athletes in K-12 schools to use the locker room designated with their biological sex, taking aim at transgender athletes.

That bill will be reintroduced this year, which Lonowski says that’s the main bill he plans to back.

"It protects the locker room spaces, and I believe that will be maybe one of the larger, more contentious bills that comes across the legislature this year," said Lonowski. "I certainly support her (Kauth) as a high school teacher and coach. 

Lonowski says he has put his name in consideration to be the education committee, plus the government and military affairs committee. 

The 1st session of the 109th Nebraska Legislature convenes for the first time on Wed. Jan. 8, at 10:00 a.m. at the state capitol in Lincoln.