Senator Steve Halloran

Steve Halloran, born on June 29, 1948, in Hastings, Nebraska, is an American politician who has been serving in the Nebraska Legislature from the 33rd district since 2017. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Education: Halloran is a graduate of St. Cecilia’s High School, class of 1966. He furthered his education at Creighton University College of Business, where he earned his Bachelor of Science degree in 1970.

Career: In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Halloran was president of the Nebraska branch of the National Farmers Organization. In this role, he was critical of US President Ronald Reagan’s agricultural policy as being too favorable to ranchers and food processors and unfavorable to grain-growing farmers. Halloran was elected president of the NFO in December 1991. In that position, he advocated farmer cooperation and the development of domestic grain consumption over grain exporting.

By 2006, however, Halloran had retired from farming and was co-owner of a HuHot Mongolian Grill restaurant in Billings, Montana. Halloran was elected to the Nebraska Legislature in 2016, where he has “largely aligned himself with the far-right flank of Nebraska politics”.

As a state senator, Halloran has been particularly critical of education policy. In February 2017, he proposed a bill that would remove funding from the Nebraska Master Teacher program. In this, Halloran has frequently been allied with state senator Steve Erdman. Along with Erdman, in April 2017 Halloran was one of three senators that opposed new rules requiring Nebraska schools to expand accommodation to students with children including breastfeeding accommodations.

Personal Life: Halloran is married to Ann since July 7, 1979, and they have two children: Michael and Lindsey. He is currently a restaurateur.