Article 16: Jurors and Jury Selection · Last amended 2022 · Last verified July 22, 2026
In one sentenceThis section makes the clerk of the district court the jury commissioner in every Nebraska county, lets counties over 175,000 residents authorize extra compensation up to three thousand dollars a year, and requires the county board to pay the commissioner’s necessary expenses on approved claims.
Full Text of § 25-1647
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(1) In each county of the State of Nebraska, the clerk of the district court shall serve as the jury commissioner.
(2) In counties having a population in excess of one hundred seventy-five thousand inhabitants, the judges of the district court within such counties shall determine whether the clerk of the district court will receive additional compensation to perform the duties of jury commissioner. The amount of any such additional compensation shall be fixed by the judges of the district court in an amount not to exceed three thousand dollars per annum.
(3) In all counties the necessary expenses incurred in the performance of the duties of jury commissioner shall be paid by the county board of the county out of the general fund, upon proper claims approved by one of the district judges in the judicial district and duly filed with the county board.
(4) In all counties the jury commissioner shall prepare and file the annual inventory statement with the county board of the county of all county personal property in his or her custody or possession, as provided in sections 23-346 to 23-350.
(5) This section shall be so interpreted as to effectuate its general purpose, to provide, in the public interest, adequate compensation for the jury commissioner and to permit a change in such salary as soon as the change may become operative under the Constitution of Nebraska.
Source
Laws 1915, c. 248, § 1, p. 568; C.S.1922, § 9095; C.S.1929, § 20-1625; Laws 1931, c. 65, § 5, p. 178; Laws 1939, c. 28, § 20, p. 159; C.S.Supp.,1941, § 20-1625; R.S.1943, § 25-1625; Laws 1947, c. 62, § 9, p. 202; Laws 1953, c. 72, § 6, p. 227; Laws 1961, c. 113, § 1, p. 352; Laws 1971, LB 547, § 1; Laws 1975, LB 527, § 1; Laws 1979, LB 234, § 6; Laws 2003, LB 19, § 4; Laws 2010, LB712, § 2; Laws 2013, LB169, § 1; R.S.1943, (2016), § 25-1625; Laws 2020, LB387, § 4; Laws 2022, LB922, § 2.
Plain-English Summary
Section 25-1647 assigns the jury commissioner’s job by default: in each Nebraska county, the clerk of the district court serves as jury commissioner. No separate appointment process is needed for the role itself, though § 25-1648 lets the commissioner name a deputy.
Larger counties get a choice about pay. In any county with more than one hundred seventy-five thousand inhabitants, the district judges decide whether the clerk receives additional compensation for the jury commissioner duties, and if they authorize it, the judges set the amount, up to three thousand dollars a year. In every county, the necessary expenses of running the jury commissioner’s office are paid by the county board out of the general fund, but only on proper claims that a district judge has approved and that have been filed with the board.
The section also folds in an administrative duty unrelated to jury selection itself: the jury commissioner must file an annual inventory statement with the county board listing all county personal property in his or her custody or possession, following the same procedure that applies to other county officers under §§ 23-346 to 23-350. A closing provision directs that the section be read to serve its general purpose — adequate compensation for the jury commissioner — and to let salary changes take effect as soon as the Nebraska Constitution allows.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who serves as jury commissioner in a Nebraska county?
The clerk of the district court, in each county of the state.
Does the jury commissioner get paid extra for that role?
Only in counties with more than one hundred seventy-five thousand inhabitants, where the district judges decide whether to authorize additional compensation, up to three thousand dollars per year.
Who pays for the jury commissioner’s office expenses?
The county board, out of the general fund, on proper claims that a district judge has approved and that have been filed with the board.
Does the jury commissioner have duties beyond jury selection?
Yes. The commissioner must file an annual inventory statement with the county board listing county personal property in his or her custody, under the same procedure that applies to other county officers.
Is the additional compensation for jury commissioners the same amount statewide?
No. It applies only in counties over one hundred seventy-five thousand inhabitants, and the district judges of that county set the amount, capped at three thousand dollars a year.
What happens if the county board disputes a jury commissioner’s expense claim?
The statute requires the claim to be approved by a district judge before it is filed with the county board, which is the safeguard the section builds into the payment process.
Source & verification. Section text and the amendment-history citation are
reproduced verbatim from the Nebraska Legislature, Revisor of Statutes, enacted by the
Nebraska Legislature. Last verified July 22, 2026. ·
Official source
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