Lincoln. Neb. ? In a move decried by some as state-sponsored segregation, the Legislature voted Thursday to divide the Omaha school system into three districts – one mostly black, one predominantly white and one largely Hispanic.

Supporters, including the bill’s sponsor and the Legislature’s lone black senator, said the plan would give minorities control over their own school board and ensure that their children are not shortchanged in favor of white youngsters.

Republican Gov. Dave Heineman signed the measure into law.

Omaha Sen. Pat Bourne decried the bill, saying, “We will go down in history as one of the first states in 20 years to set race relations back.”

“History will not, and should not, judge us kindly,” said Sen. Gwen Howard, of Omaha.

Sens. Patrick Bourne, left, and John Synowiecki, right, talk with Sen. Ernie Chambers, all of Omaha, on Thursday, April 13, 2006, in Lincoln, Neb., after the Legislature passed a bill that would divide the Omaha school system into three districts--one mostly black, one predominantly white and one largely Hispanic. Bourne and Synowiecki were opposed to the bill, and Chambers supported it.

Atty. Gen. Jon Bruning sent a letter to one of the measure’s opponents saying that the bill could be in violation of the Constitution’s equal-protection clause and that lawsuits almost certainly will be filed.

But its backers said that at the very least, its passage will force policymakers to negotiate seriously about the future of schools in the Omaha area.

The breakup would not occur until July 2008, leaving time for lawmakers to come up with another idea.

“There is no intent to create segregation,” said Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers, the Legislature’s only black senator and a longtime critic of the school system.

He argued that the district is already segregated, because it no longer buses students for integration and instead requires them to attend their neighborhood school.