State Must Pay for Boys Town Schooling

Nebraskans must shoulder the costs of educating young wards of the state who are placed at Boys Town and similar institutions, the state Supreme Court in Lincoln ruled. State officials said the decision is likely to cost taxpayers about $2 million annually, plus an estimated $11.5 million in back payments, to Father Flanagan’s Boys Town and other institutions that educate wards of the state. Historically, the state was billed only for the costs of wards who needed special education. But in 1991, Boys Town demanded additional payments for the costs of general education.