LINCOLN, Neb. - The 109th Nebraska Legislative Session is underway.

Nebraska's 49 state lawmakers met at the capitol on Wednesday to kick off the new session. Day one's agenda focused on setting a foundation for the session, as boards were decided and the group decided on their 14 committee chair representatives. In addition, 17 new senators enter, making up over a third of the legislative body. 

Main issues and topics of discussion for the session include the states budget short fall and the ongoing push for property tax relief. 

The emphasis on state budget stems from the projection that the state will run $432-million short in the next to fiscal years. Without swift action, the budget hole could grow to over $1-billion by 2029.

Speaker John Arch and District #30 Sen. Myron Dorn shared thoughts on how to solve the issues.

"The appropriations committee, line by line, they will go through all of that budget and make those adjustments and have hearings and discussions on all of that," Arch said. "Then it comes to the floor, we have more debate. I would say the budget will be the biggest issue in terms of bills we will have to debate."

"When we work through the process, we have all the agencies in and stuff and see where we can start pulling some stuff back," Dorn said. "We also will have the governors budget... I always tell people it's like a big, giant puzzle. It will be done during this session, it will work, it will all fit in there, we just have to work to get to that point."

As day one concludes, attention turns to day two, this Thursday. Day two's agenda includes innaugural ceremonies and is the first day in which senators may introduce new bills.