It’s been an incredibly busy year at OpenSky, navigating the regular legislative session, saying goodbye to legislators who will not be returning in January, navigating the heat (both literal and figurative!) in [...]
$432 millionOn Wednesday, Nebraska’s Tax Rate Review Committee projected a $432 million budget shortfall for the upcoming FY26-FY27 biennium, nearly $490 million below what was expected after the conclusion of the 2024 [...]
$7.69 billion Economists estimate that Nebraska’s 2024 farm income will reach $7.69 billion, which would reflect a 17% year-over-year decrease, but rank as the third highest on record, according to the Center [...]
OpenSkyLIGHTS: Focus on Nebraska fiscal policy $4.4 billion Today is National Tourism Day, and according to the U.S. Travel Association, Nebraska business and leisure travel generated $376 million in 2022, the last [...]
1,351 Nebraska State Auditor Mike Foley issued a 26-page advisory letter warning state and local lawmakers about the potential consequences of rapidly increasing use of Tax Increment Financing (TIF) funds [...]
$100,000 Indiana is the latest to join the list of states with outrageously expensive school voucher programs that attract primarily affluent students already enrolled in private schools. The average recipient of a [...]
$122 Billion School districts across the country are facing budget crunches as ESSR, a $122 billion federal cash infusion targeted to mitigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, sunsets next month. This, [...]
After days of deliberation and a weekend of intense negotiations to seek to secure the necessary number of votes to overcome a filibuster, the Revenue Committee advanced AM 73 to LB 34 [...]
Welcome to OpenSkyLIGHTS, with our special edition highlighting key numbers related to the Nebraska Legislature’s Special Session. 113 LB1, introduced by Senator Lou Ann Linehan, outlines elements of Governor Jim Pillen’s Nebraska [...]
During the upcoming special session, Governor Jim Pillen has shared that he plans to introduce the concept of “hard caps” as a means to provide property tax relief for Nebraskans. Whether the [...]