Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
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The Legislature passed the budget bills this past week. Governor Ricketts has five days (not counting Sunday) to decide whether to sign the legislation. The governor has the authority to line-item veto specific items on budget bills, without vetoing the entire bill. Once the budget bills have been passed, other legislation that appropriates General Funds or results in the reduction of revenue to the General Fund, and all other tax expenditure bills, can be read on final reading. LB 2,...
The Legislature debated several of my bills last week. On Tuesday afternoon, we debated my amendment to my LB 561, a bill to further define and implement the voter-approved initiative on casino gaming at racetracks. As 70% of the tax revenue derived from these casinos is dedicated to property tax relief, it is important to get this done right. Gambling is a divisive issue in our Legislature and the debate reflected that. After the question was divided on the issue of electronic keno, we spent a...
Gov. Pete Ricketts signed a two-year state budget promoting tax relief and controlling state spending, into law, Monday. Budget growth was limited to 1.7% and set at $9.7 billion for the two-year period ending June 30, 2023. The newly-signed budget leaves $206 million available, although that total could change after April 29, when revenue forecasts will be updated. Ricketts said, "The budget I have signed controls state spending and significantly increases direct property tax relief for the peo...
SEN. TIM GRAGERT The Legislature gave the budget bills second-round approval this past week, making only minor adjustments. After the budget is passed, the speaker plans to schedule taxation and spending measures. The session is more than two-thirds complete, but we still have many significant issues to discuss. As introduced, LB 406 focused on flood-control infrastructure projects along the lower Platte River. Senator Mike McDonnell, the primary sponsor of LB 406, has offered an amendment to...
NATHAN BEACOM Senior policy associate Center for Rural Affairs Legislative Bill 108, a bill to fix a flaw known as the "cliff effect" in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, received first round approval in the Nebraska Legislature last week. Right now, if a family makes more than 130% of the federal poverty level, they lose their assistance. Most households, however, won't make enough at that level to replace the benefits they lose, which can lead people to turn down career advances in order to keep their benefits. This is...
BROOKE WRAGE Nebraska News Service A school safety reporting system was approved in the Nebraska Legislature on April 6, in the second round after a long debate. Sen. Matt Williams of Gothenburg said he introduced LB 322 to reduce violent incidents in all K-12 schools in Nebraska by having a trained crisis team on staff 24/7. The reporting line, Safe2HelpNE, would allow students, school staff, parents and community members to anonymously share information about concerning behavior by phone,...
The Appropriations Committee advanced their finalized recommendations for the Fiscal Year 2021-22 and 2022-23 biennial budget to the full Legislature. First-round debate took place this past week and all bills were advanced unanimously except LB383, dealing with capital construction. Under the $9.7 billion biennial budget proposal, the two-year average estimated revenue growth is 3.0%, whereas the two-year average growth in spending is just 1.6%. The committee was able to control the growth of spending due to a higher federal match for...
MADLEINE GRANT Nebraska News Service A bill that would provide financial aid for low-income students advanced to the next round of debate in the Nebraska Legislature on March 24. Sen. Lynne Walz of Fremont introduced LB529, which would set the distribution of lottery dollars for education programs from 2021-2022 through 2025-2026. Every five years, the Nebraska Legislature’s Education Committee reevaluates the use of lottery funds and decides which education programs will receive funding. Since a previous version of the bill (LB920) failed t...
GRACE GORENFLO Nebraska News Service Nearly 100 tax-related bills have been introduced this legislative session, with topics ranging from selling alcohol at farmers markets to excluding retired military from state income tax. Chair of the Revenue Committee Sen. Lou Ann Linehan of Elkhorn said the committee has a package of sales tax bills and a package of income tax bills it is working to pass this session. The committee’s two priority bills, LB432 and LB595, will each have several other tax bills amended into them after hearings have c...
The question of whether Nebraska should legalize medical marijuana will be debated by the Legislature this year. LB 474, the Medicinal Cannabis Act, was advanced this past week from the Judiciary Committee on a 5-2-1 vote. It has been prioritized by Senator Anna Wishart, the primary sponsor of LB 474. The bill, 62 pages in length, provides the regulatory framework to establish access to cannabis for medical purposes. It limits the allowable amount of cannabis, requires a patient to have a bona...
BROOKE WRAGE Nebraska News Service As of March 31, Gov. Pete Ricketts approved 16 bills to become state laws. The bills include topics varying from transportation and health care to government and military affairs. An overview of the new state laws follows. View the full list of bills that received approval on the Nebraska Legislature at https://nebraskalegislature.gov/calendar/agenda.php?day=2021-03-25. LB 14: Adopt the Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology Interstate Compact Sen. Carol Blood of Bellevue introduced LB 14, which will allow...
JOHNATHAN HLADIK Policy director Center for Rural Affairs The past 12 months have not been easy for small businesses. Communities have lost longtime staples, as well as opportunities for future growth, as entrepreneurs were forced to delay planned investments. As business and community leaders work to recover, it is important that every tool, including the Microenterprise Tax Credit, remains available. From hair salons and restaurants to grocery and hardware stores, more than 80% of the state’s businesses fall into the microenterprise category....
The Legislature has completed Day 50 of this 90-day legislative session and is in the middle of debate on bills that have been designated as a priority by senators, committees and the speaker. As a general rule, only bills that have been designated as a priority are placed on the agenda at this point in the session. There is an exception to this rule for a procedure called consent calendar. This process allows non-controversial, non-prioritized bills to be considered in an efficient manner....
The Legislature gave first-round approval to a bill that attempts to make it easier for the consumer to purchase individual packages of meat directly from the producer or processor. LB 324 authorizes herd-share agreements with a producer prior to slaughter, thereby giving the consumer an ownership interest in the animal. The farmer and consumer will develop a bill of sale that decides where the animal will be processed, which cuts of meat will be available and at what price. Then the farmer...
The work of the Legislature is now about getting bills to the floor for debate by the entire body. And that generally means a priority designation. Priority bills, one per senator, two per committee and twenty-five for the speaker, have now been designated. Senator Geist prioritized my LB 408, which provides for a 3 percent limit on annual increases in property tax askings. It may be debated on the floor of the legislature next week. Senator Slama prioritized my LB 139, which provides a measure...
BROOKE WRAGE, CELENA SHEPHERD and MADELEINE GRANT Nebraska News Service The first week of floor debates kicked off the second week in March. Senators debated and advanced a handful of bills in the Nebraska Legislature. A recap of the week. LB255: Provide compensation to families of deceased first responders Sen. Matt Hansen, of Lincoln, introduced LB255, which would establish the In the Line of Duty Compensation Act to provide a one-time death benefit for a family member of a first responder who dies while on the line of duty. “I believe it i...
Madeleine Grant and Brooke Wrage Nebraska News Service LINCOLN--Nebraska lawmakers continue to push for marijuana legislation this session. On Feb. 19, the Nebraska Legislature Judiciary Committee heard six bills relating to the legalization and decriminalization of marijuana. Substance possession penalties State senators are considering a bill to change the penalty for controlled substance possession. LB 287, was introduced by Sen. Justin Wayne of Omaha to lessen penalties for possession of unusable amounts of controlled substances under the...
The legislature has wrapped up most committee hearings, and began half-day floor debate this week. Full-day floor debate will begin next week. In the meantime, committees are voting on which bills will be moved on to general file. By the time you read this, most priority designations will have been announced. The determination by individual senators, committees and the speaker as to which bills get a priority designation is extremely important, as bills without a priority designation will...
The Nebraska Economic Forecasting Advisory Board met last week and revised the current forecast upwards. The board projected an increase of $204 million for fiscal year 2020-21, $165 million for fiscal year 2021-22 and $93 million for fiscal year 2022-23, for a total increase of $462 million. The three-year average growth rate increased from 2.9% to 3.4%. Under LB 1107, the property tax relief bill passed last year, property taxpayers are eligible for a refundable income tax credit based on the...
The extreme cold spell that Nebraska and other states experienced during the middle of February increased energy needs across the region, resulting in unprecedented short-term rolling blackouts. Public power districts were directed by the Southwest Power Pool to shed electricity usage immediately in order to prevent longer, more widespread power outages. The urgency of the situation, in which power demand exceeded generated power and minimum reserves were exhausted, prevented advance notice to...
On Feb. 26, the Revenue Committee voted to advance LB 408, as amended by AM 371, on a 7-1 vote. The amended version of the bill would limit the annual increase in property tax askings to no more than 3%, with some exceptions. The sponsor of the bill, Sen. Tom Briese of Albion, commented on its advancement. “Property tax relief requires a multi-pronged approach. One approach must be to place reasonable restrictions on property taxes. And that’s what this bill does.” Briese continued, “This...
The Center for Rural Affairs has chosen Mike Tabbert, of rural Antelope County, to receive its 2020 Citizenship Award. The Citizenship Award is given to an individual or individuals who actively participate in the civic process for creating public policy and who work closely with the Center for Rural Affairs to advance public policies that strengthen family farms, ranches and rural communities. Over the past year, Tabbert has demonstrated advocacy in several ways to advance broadband...
The Legislature passed the one-third mark this week in the 90-day legislative session. The Appropriations Committee also presented its preliminary recommendations for the biennial budget. This provides a starting point for discussion of the various budget actions suggested so far. After the Appropriations Committee finishes its committee work, it will develop formal recommendations to be presented to the Legislature by mid to late March, at which time floor debate will take place. Although we...
Governor Ricketts testified before the Transportation and Telecommunications Committee this past week, expressing his support for LB 388, the Nebraska Broadband Bridge Act. The purpose of the program is to facilitate and fund the development of broadband networks in unserved and underserved areas. LB 388 contains intent language to appropriate $20 million annually to the Public Service Commission to be distributed as grants. Providers, cooperatives or political subdivisions could apply for the...
Nebraskans may not have to remember to set clocks back one hour in the fall, if LB283 passes through the Legislature. On Feb. 3, the Government Committee held a hearing on the bill, which is an updated version of last year's LB1015, which stalled in committee. More than one-third of the Legislature co-sponsored the bill. "It seems everyone in the state hates the idea in having to change their clocks twice a year and I really do mean everyone," Briese said during the hearing. LB283 would move...
