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County schedules March 10 public hearing for updated General Assistance and Medical Assistance guidelines; cremation, marker and rent caps proposed to increase
Summary
Lincoln County set a March 10 public hearing on proposed revisions to its General Assistance and Medical Assistance guidelines; the draft would raise the cremation payment to $1,500, increase monument-marker payments to $500 and add urn purchases as an eligible expense (estimated $200–$300).
The Lincoln County Board of Commissioners voted to set a public hearing for March 10, 2025, at 10 a.m. on proposed revisions to the county's General Assistance and Medical Assistance (GAA) guidelines.
Tyler Volkmar, the county's deputy attorney, and Jada Venezi of the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services presented recommended updates that county staff say bring the guidelines closer to current costs and federal poverty benchmarks. Tyler told the board the subcommittee reviewed the package before it came to the full board.
Jada Venezi summarized the key numeric changes discussed with the subcommittee. "So we were at for cremations, we were at $1,050... and I think we're proposing to go up to 1,500," she said. On markers, she said local monument vendors reported losses at the older payment level; the proposed marker payment to match vendor break-even was $500 (current payment: $310). Venezi also said the county does not currently purchase urns but her discussions with a local mortuary suggested urns could cost "between 2 and $300." (Transcript reflects that number as an approximate range provided by mortuary staff.)
Venezi and county staff also discussed income and resource limits used in eligibility calculations. She said the county's current guideline shows about $850 (as a three-month average) for a one-person household and that the maximum rent assistance authorized by older guidelines — $550 — is no longer realistic in the local rental market. One county staffer reported a local figure "between 8 and 900" as a current market benchmark during the committee consultation; that number was described as an estimate and not a finalized proposed cap.
Commissioners and staff emphasized that program intent is short-term, emergency assistance: comments described the GAA benefit as a stopgap for people pending other longer-term supports (for example, awaiting Social Security disability determinations), not a permanent income program.
The board voted to set the March 10 public hearing for the guidelines package. The county also received a letter from a local monument company requesting higher marker payments; commissioners said the draft addresses that request and reduces the likelihood that local vendors would carry the cost as an uncompensated charitable service.
Why it matters: The county's GAA program provides short-term financial and funeral-related assistance to low-income residents. The proposed increases affect the county's obligations for funeral costs, markers and emergency rent/sundry assistance and could affect local funeral and monument vendors who have carried costs under outdated payments.
What’s next: The board will publish required notices and hold the public hearing on March 10, at which citizens and vendors can testify. Any final changes would require a subsequent board vote after the hearing.
