The Nebraska Liquor Control Commission meets for its monthly meeting Aug. 5, 2025. From left: Commissioners Kim Lowe of Kearney, Bruce Bailey of Lincoln (chair) and J. Michael Coffey of Omaha. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)
LINCOLN — The last two members of the Nebraska Liquor Control Commission who served with a former director who faces federal charges alleging public corruption are resigning at the governor’s request.
Liquor Commissioner Bruce Bailey of Lincoln, who served as commission chair, confirmed to the Nebraska Examiner on Monday that Gov. Jim Pillen had personally asked for his resignation as well as that of Commissioner Kim Lowe of Kearney. Neither commissioner is implicated in the federal indictment.
Bailey said Pillen personally called Thursday. Bailey submitted his resignation Monday morning and said Lowe was on her way in to resign at the time of the call. The Governor’s Office confirmed both resignations had been received.
“They’re moving on,” Bailey said.
Pillen’s latest calls for resignations from the governor-appointed board came Thursday, Bailey said, a day after federal charges were unsealed against former Liquor Commission Executive Director Hobert “Hobie” Rupe. Rupe has pleaded not guilty to seven federal charges.
The calls also came the same day Pillen rejected all proposed rule changes by the commission that were still pending, including one the governor said would “effectively provide government permission for customers to touch the dancers at a strip club,” which he said was “particularly troubling” in light of Rupe’s indictment.
Federal prosecutors, who worked alongside the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office that had previously employed Rupe, allege Rupe solicited cash, lap dances, sexual favors and free drinks from two Lincoln strip clubs while also turning a “blind eye” to liquor license violations that Rupe should have reported. Rupe also allegedly used his position to investigate and target competitor venues.
Bailey and Lowe voted 2-0 in May to suspend Rupe, without pay, pending the investigation. Rupe resigned the following month, ending his service that began January 2004.
Like Rupe, Brent Zywiec, a partial owner of The Office Gentleman’s Club and The Night Before Lounge who also is named in the federal indictment, has pleaded not guilty.
The other Liquor Commission member is retired Judge J. Michael Coffey, whom Pillen appointed in June. Coffey succeeded Harry Hoch. Jr., who had served on the commission since 2019. Hoch had 40 years of industry knowledge in liquor and told the Examiner his resignation came as Pillen sought “more cannabis experience” on the board.
Medical cannabis impacts
One reason: Voters in November approved creating the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Commission and placed the three members of the Liquor Control Commission on it, along with up to two at-large appointments.
Bailey said he felt Pillen also sought his resignation due to his more permissive view of medical cannabis in light of voters’ wishes. He said some in the executive branch viewed him as a “roadblock.”
At recent meetings, Bailey had been vocal when he felt the commission was being too restrictive, mainly at the lead of Pillen’s at-large appointees, who prefer a stricter system. Among those positions, Bailey had called to allow smoking or vaping medical cannabis and to increase the number of cultivator licenses to boost the supply chain.
The Nebraska Medical Cannabis Commission, from left: Commissioners Bruce Bailey of Lincoln, Lorelle Mueting of Gretna, Dr. Monica Oldenburg of Lincoln, Kim Lowe of Kearney and J. Michael Coffey of Omaha. At right is Bo Botelho, general counsel for the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services contracted to work with the commission. Sept. 2, 2025. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)
Members of the public attending the meetings had also praised Bailey for meeting with them one-on-one and raising their concerns.
The Medical Cannabis Commission was set to meet Tuesday but appears unlikely to approve any cultivator licenses ahead of a voter-set Oct. 1 deadline to begin issuing the first licenses. Dr. Monica Oldenburg, commission chair, had been designated to review and evaluate any applications received by last Tuesday, alongside Lowe and Bailey.
The Liquor Control Commission had been set to meet on Wednesday but will no longer meet due to a lack of members. Bailey said the commission has a “great staff” in its stead. Lowe described the staff as “rock stars.”
Oldenburg did not immediately respond Monday to a request for comment.
The resignations mean that, once replaced, Pillen will have appointed all three members to oversee liquor and the two others to oversee medical cannabis. Members serve staggered six-year terms.
Pillen has said the new appointments will follow his example with Coffey, whom he said “Nebraskans can trust to restore strong leadership and governance to this troubled independent agency.” Pillen has said he has no intention of retooling and moving the agency under the governor’s direct control.
Reflecting on commission service
In Bailey’s 11 years on the Liquor Commission, he reflected on the group’s work to implement new software for license holders and to create a new education program for bartenders and others that is set to start soon and he said is “99% complete.”
“We’ve accomplished some good things,” Bailey said.
Bailey’s service also coincided with the 2017 vote to end liquor licenses in Whiteclay, Nebraska, establishments that were criticized for years of having contributed to alcohol-related problems on the adjacent Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, where alcohol possession and sales were legally prohibited.
Commissioners Kim Lowe of Kearney and Bruce Bailey of Lincoln of the Nebraska Liquor Control Commission. May 29, 2025. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)
Lowe, who joined the Liquor Commission in 2021, said serving on the board was a great opportunity. She also highlighted the move to a new software system and said she was “very proud” of what had been accomplished in her tenure.
On the Rupe situation, Bailey said he is still surprised by the allegations, reeling and second-guessing himself and wondering, “Should I have seen something?”
“The governor said we should have known. I don’t know how we could have. We certainly don’t keep track what people do in their off time,” Bailey said.
Bailey said he partly wishes he had known and had an opportunity to intervene and at least say, “Hey, dumb s—, don’t do it.”
“I liked him a lot as a friend,” Bailey said of Rupe, “and I’m sorry that he just simply went off the deep end.”
Lowe said she had no knowledge of what Rupe is accused of doing. Hoch did not immediately return a call seeking comment Monday.
Asked her thoughts on the Liquor Commission moving forward, Lowe said: “I just hope the best for this organization.”
This is a developing story.
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