Nebraska

Facilities in Nebraska

Residential facilities providing religious, behavioral, and mental health treatment to children exist in all 50 states. Some of these facilities are known to be part of the Troubled Teen Industry, while others have not yet been verified. Any facility where children live and receive care requires additional oversight. This directory helps communities monitor local programs and advocate for accountability.

Reporting abuse in Nebraska

Nebraska has an Office of Inspector General of Nebraska Child Welfare that sits in the legislature rather than in the department it scrutinises, and takes complaints directly. That independence matters when the concern is that the agency itself is not acting. Nebraska also says its hotline reports are confidential and are not shared with the family.

Time limits in Nebraska: a general guide

This was correct as far as we could tell when we checked it on 28 September 2026. Laws on time limits change often, sometimes every legislative session, so some of what follows may have been updated since. It is a starting point, not legal advice: please check with a lawyer before relying on any date here. A time limit on a lawsuit or a criminal charge is also not a time limit on telling someone, and most of the places listed below will still take a report.

Time limits for abuse of a child often run from the survivor's 18th birthday, or from when they came to understand what happened, rather than from the day the program closed. Many states have lengthened them, removed them for child sexual abuse, or reopened claims that had already expired. A criminal charge, a lawsuit and a licence complaint each have their own time limit, so one having passed does not necessarily mean the others have.

Lawsuits

Physical abuse or injury: Less certain Four years for personal injury, including assault, battery, false imprisonment and negligence. (Nebraska used to have a one-year limit for assault and battery, but it was removed in 2000.) Neb. Rev. Stat. 25-207(3)
If it happened before you turned 18: Less certain Yes. If you were a minor when hurt, the clock does not start until the disability ends. Nebraska courts read the statute's 'within the age of twenty years' to mean until your 21st birthday, so the four-year limit usually runs to age 25. There is no general extended deadline for physical (non-sexual) child abuse. Neb. Rev. Stat. 25-213
If the program was run by or for the government: State of Nebraska: a written claim must be filed with the Risk Manager within two years. Counties, cities, school districts and other political subdivisions: a written claim within one year and a lawsuit within two years. For minors these deadlines are tolled under 25-213. Neb. Rev. Stat. 81-8,227 (State Tort Claims Act); 13-919 (Political Subdivisions Tort Claims Act)
Child sexual abuse: CSA: There is no civil SOL for child sexual assault claims against perpetrators. The SOL is age 33 for child sexual assault claims against all other defendants and age 25 for all other CSA claims. Trafficking: The civil SOL for trafficking claims is age 25. CSAM: The civil SOL for CSAM claims is age 25. CHILD USA's summary

Criminal charges

Physical child abuse: Less certain For child abuse (felony or misdemeanor) when the child was under 16: seven years from the abuse or seven years from the child's 16th birthday, whichever is later. If the child was 16 or 17, the general limits apply (three years for a felony, 18 months for a misdemeanor). Neb. Rev. Stat. 29-110(3); offense at 28-707
Assault: Three years from the offense for felony assault (first- and second-degree assault). Misdemeanor (third-degree) assault: 18 months. Neb. Rev. Stat. 29-110(1), (2); assault offenses 28-308 to 28-310
Child sexual abuse: CSA: There is no criminal SOL for many CSA crimes, and the SOL for lesser degrees of those offenses is age 25 or age 23, with an 18-month SOL for misdemeanors. Trafficking: There is no SOL for felony trafficking crimes. CSAM: There is no SOL for felony CSAM offenses. CHILD USA's summary

The injury, assault and physical abuse lines are our reading of the statutes linked, as they stood on 28 September 2026. The child sexual abuse lines are CHILD USA's summary as it stood on 28 September 2026; their page may be more current than ours. In them SOL means statute of limitations, CSA child sexual abuse, and CSAM child sexual abuse material. "Less certain" marks a line where the law is unclear or where our reading has not been confirmed, so please treat it with extra care. Exceptions, court rulings and the details of what happened can all change which time limit applies, and some of these may be longer or shorter for you than they look here. CHILD USA's statute of limitations tracker, updated as each state changes its law. A lawyer can tell you which time limit applies to you, and many offer a free first consultation.

The therapist's licensing board

Holds the individual clinician's licence and can suspend or revoke it.

Nebraska DHHS, Division of Public Health, Office of Investigations

Multiple professions

Investigates complaints against licensed, registered and certified health care professionals in Nebraska, including mental health practitioners and psychologists, for breaches of the Uniform Credentialing Act and the rules governing their practice.

Use this whenA licensed mental health practitioner or psychologist in Nebraska.

HowGet the reporting form from the Investigations page or by phone. Describe every allegation in detail, give specific dates for each incident, list any witnesses, and attach copies of the documents that bear on it.

A licensed professional has to report their own misdemeanour or felony conviction, or discipline elsewhere, to this office within 30 days - so it may already hold a history.

The agency that licenses the program

Inspects the facility itself and can cite, fine, suspend or close it.

Nebraska DHHS Children's Services Licensing

Licenses Residential Child-Caring Agencies and Child-Placing Agencies in Nebraska, and investigates every allegation of a licensing violation in a children and youth care facility.

Use this whenA licensed residential child-caring agency.

HowEmail or write to Children's Services Licensing.

More about this body
DHHS.ChildCareLicensing@nebraska.gov
By postDHHS Children's Services Licensing, PO Box 94986, Lincoln, NE 68509

Law enforcement and legal channels

Child protection, the Attorney General, and the criminal side.

Nebraska Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline

The statewide report line for suspected child abuse and neglect.

Use this whenA child at a Nebraska program.

HowCall, or report through the online hotline system.

Reports are confidential and are not shared with the family. A Child and Family Services Specialist may contact you during the assessment, and you can ask to stay anonymous. Online, the reporter's information stays confidential unless a court or a law enforcement agency with jurisdiction requests it.

Oversight and advocacy

Bodies with a right to investigate, and advocates who can act for you.

Office of Inspector General of Nebraska Child Welfare

An independent office in the Nebraska legislature, outside the department it oversees, taking complaints about the child welfare system and the facilities in it.

It scrutinises the system rather than licensing or prosecuting a program itself.

Use this whenAnyone who believes Nebraska's child welfare system, or a facility within it, has failed a child - particularly where a report to the department has gone nowhere.

HowFile through the Office's own complaint page.

File a complaint

Disability Rights Nebraska

Nebraska's Protection and Advocacy agency, with federal authority to investigate abuse and neglect of people with disabilities in facilities, a right of access to them, and free legal advocacy.

Use this whenA Nebraska program where the young person has a disability or a mental health diagnosis.

HowContact the intake line.

1-800-422-6691 Main line 402-413-2016 voice/TDD.
More about this body

National reporting channels, and the same list for other states