Editors note: Monday (today!) is the last day for comments to the State Dept on the areas they should study this time around.

The U.S. Department of State (DOS) is currently asking for comments on scoping for the study of the latest version of the TransCanada Keystone XL pipeline.  "Scoping" defines the different items and issues DOS will research and evaluate in order to estblish criteria for approval or denial of the pipeline project.  What DOS studies, and how they study it, is critical to the effectiveness of their evaluation of the pipeline project, and it is up to citizens to suggest important items of concern that will affect us, our land, water, economy and communities.

The city of Lincoln has a survey out to get your input on where they should get their energy from, what you think about climate change and what you know about their current sustainable energy programs.

We need Bold Nebraskans to complete the survey so our voices for a more diversified energy portfolio can start to be a reality.

Read today's news from around the state and country. Each day in the Roundup we cover politics, always with a side of bold humor. We think politics should be fun, informative and encourage us all to take action.

On July 25th, Nebraskans will stand with the citizens who experienced America's worst inland oil spill. Two years ago, a Canadian tarsands company Enbridge had a rupture in their pipeline. The spill has cost $725 million dollars so far to "clean-up" and families are still picking up the pieces.

Last year, Ben traveled to the spill site, you can see a video and read more about what he saw and learned.

Today, Congressman Lee Terry announced new legislation to speed up the construction of the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. The Congressman’s proposal ignores TransCanada’s bad actor status, flies in the face of last week’s Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality report that highlights specific environmental risks and ignores Governor Heineman’s own concerns regarding the Ogallala Aquifer.

Serious environmental and health concerns about tar sands and the pipeline route mean that TransCanada has run into road blocks at every step of their proposal process. Now, in order to game the system—with Congressman Lee Terry carrying the water—and build a cross-country pipeline behind our backs, TransCanada is trying to split up their proposal into piecemeal sections.

Read today's news from around the state and country. Each day in the Roundup we cover politics, always with a side of bold humor. We think politics should be fun, informative and encourage us all to take action.

TransCanada wants the public to believe that the “new” proposed route for the Keystone XL tarsands export pipeline avoids ecologically sensitive regions in Nebraska. While the new route does not pass through the EPA-defined “Sand Hills” region, a map pushed on our state behind closed with TransCanada lobbyists, it does pass through sandy hills with the same porous soil and it does pass through the critical Ogallala Aquifer and other critical bodies of water.

Click here for response to TransCanada's 3rd proposed route.

One way TransCanada "sells" their pipeline to elected officials is they go to county boards and state legislatures and brag about the money they will pay in taxes. It's one of the oldest corporate tricks in the playbook, distract from the real problems and risks of a project with promises of tax money, pet projects, special side deals, and of course jobs (reality is the pipeline would create enough work to slash America’s jobless rate by less than 0.0005% and this is the "jobs plan" folks like Deb Fischer and Gov. Heineman fully support).

The Omaha World Herald covers TransCanada's latest lie in Sunday's paper, "Windfall From First Keystone Pipeline Falls Short," by Paul Hammel.

On July 25th, to mark the two-year anniversary of a toxic tarsands spill in the Kalamazoo River, folks from across the country will host actions and press events to bring attention to the risks of tarsands on our water, land and families health. You can participate by taking a photo of your favorite body of water or water that the pipeline crosses. 

We compiled a list of "to-dos" for you to take action on all summer long to help stop the TransCanada tarsands pipeline. We also post events happening in these hot months on our Event Page.

In the fall we will post a new list! And in the winter we will post another new list! You get the point, we will never surrender to TransCanada like Gov. Heineman and too many politicians to name here have already.