Speaker Mike Flood introduced a bill Friday in a special session that would limit the age of children covered by Nebraska’s safe haven law to 72 hours.

But there appears to be little agreement on whether that is the right age.

Sen. Annette Dubas of Fullerton followed with a bill (LB3) that set the age at 1 year or younger, with a second set of provisions for parents or guardians of older children — from ages 1 to 15 — to continue to be able to seek immediate assistance for services from regional safe haven intervention teams.

Dubas introduced the competing legislation because she was concerned about what was happening to older children in the state, and distressed the state was closing the door on those families, she said.

Flood’s bill, introduced on behalf of Gov. Dave Heineman, also includes an emergency clause so, if passed, it would go into effect as soon as the governor signs it.

As of Friday evening, the state’s safe haven law had been used 25 times since Sept. 13 for 34 children, ages 20 months to 17 years old. Five of those children were brought to Nebraska from other states: Iowa, Michigan, Indiana, Georgia and Florida. All the out-of-state children were returned to their respective states.

The Dubas bill is a short-term solution, she said, that would give the Legislature time in the next session, which begins in January, to deal with the issues of services for older children that have come to light with the current law. It would sunset at the close of the 2009 session.

Dubas said she would not apologize for the bill senators wrote and passed in the 2008 session, even though the state has taken a hit in the national media because of it. She feels sorry that children are being traumatized as a result, she said, “but I can’t believe they aren’t already in a traumatic situation.”

Her pro-life advocacy goes beyond just carrying a baby to term, she said.

“After these children are born, we have an obligation to make sure they grow up in as good a situation as possible,” she said.

Her bill likely would not fall under the call of the session, so it would not be debated next week. But she is pleased, she said, that it will get a public hearing on Monday so the issues it addresses can be discussed. The “call” of the session is what is set out by the governor as the limit for debate.

The Legislature completed its first day of the special session Friday in less than an hour. Senators will meet briefly Saturday beginning at 9 a.m. and then reconvene Monday.

The Legislature’s Judiciary Committee will hear the bills Monday afternoon at 1:30 in Room 1525 of the state Capitol.

Omaha Sen. Rich Pahls on Friday changed his mind about introducing a bill similar to one (LB6) he sponsored in 2007. That bill, which was killed last year, called for an age limit of 30 days on abandoned infants, as well as other requirements for how to deal with abandoned babies.

In an opinion requested by Pahls and issued Friday, Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning said Pahls’ bill exceeded the governor’s call to “reduce the maximum age of children to whom the statute applies.”

“The last thing I wanted was for us to proceed with a bill that was too broad, have its constitutionality challenged, and we end up with the age limit being 18 years again,” Pahls said in a statement.

In the setting of a newly renovated legislative chamber, Omaha Sen. Lowen Kruse opened the 3 p.m. session with a prayer, asking help for those for whom life is not fair, acknowledging that all things cannot be made even, and realizing that adults who have responsibilities sometimes fail to meet them.

A number of senators said Friday they are hearing from their constituents and others that 72 hours for an age limit is too narrow. There’s not much agreement, however, on what the age should be.

Senators have the option of introducing amendments to any bill during debate to change the age limit, and some have plans to do so.

Lincoln Sen. Ron Raikes said he would prefer to simply repeal the law for now and let senators decide the issue in the regular session that begins in January. It’s such a complex issue, he said, it can’t be dealt with effectively in a seven-day special session.

Sen. Chris Langemeier of Schuyler said comments he has received indicate people believe the age limit should be lowered, but that 3 days is too low.

“Is there a number everybody feels comfortable with? No,” he said.

The majority of people who have called Lincoln Sen. Amanda McGill’s office think the limit should be 12 months to 18 months.

“As of right now,” she said as the session was set to begin, “I would like to see it at more than 72 hours.”

Lincoln Sen. Tony Fulton said the age limit should be 5-10 days old. After that, he said, the infant has bonded to the mother chemically, emotionally and psychologically. But within three days, the mother may not be physically able to take the baby to a hospital.

Sen. Pat Engel of South Sioux City introduced a bill Friday that would fund the session at nearly $69,000. The money would come from the state’s general fund.

Reach JoAnne Young at 473-7228 or jyoung@journalstar.com.