91,000

Thanks to a successful ballot initiative, the Economic Policy Institute estimates that 91,000 workers – 9.5% of Nebraska’s workforce – will see a wage increase when the state’s minimum wage goes from $10.50 an hour to $12 an hour on Jan. 1. The ballot measure overwhelmingly approved by voters last year calls for similar increases in 2025 and 2026, followed by annual cost-of-living adjustments.

Nationwide, 9.9 million workers will earn more in 2024 as a result of increases in the minimum wage in 22 states. Of those seeing wage hikes, 1 in 5 have incomes below the poverty line. In Nebraska, an estimated 71,500 children live in households affected by the increase.

23

As of Wednesday, 23 states, including Kansas, West Virginia and Wisconsin, have told the U.S. Department of Agriculture that they intend to participate in a federal food assistance program aimed at feeding kids during the summer months. Nebraska said it would not participate in the new Summer EBT program that would give $120 in grocery assistance to the families of students who receive free or reduced-price meals at school. Estimates indicate Nebraska students would have qualified to receive a combined $18 million in annual benefits in exchange for the state paying $300,000 to cover administrative costs.

Nebraska’s decision comes as a new report shows that 44.2 million people nationwide lived in households that had difficulty getting enough food to feed everyone in 2022, up from 33.8 million people the year prior. Those families include more than 13 million children experiencing food insecurity, a jump of nearly 45% from 2021.

Read USDA report on food insecurity

Read commentary on Nebraska’s decision on Summer EBT participation

81%

In a national survey of small business owners, 4 out of 5 said that health care costs have an impact on their bottom line. Those high costs, according to business owners, have constrained growth (34%), led to price increases (33%) and limited hiring (27%).

With 90% of small business owners reporting increased health care premiums, the survey showed strong support for legislative solutions ranging from regulating anti-competitive practices to boosting price transparency in order to bring down costs.

Read findings from Small Business for America’s Future

4,610

Nebraska lost more residents with a bachelor’s degree or higher in 2022 than at any point in the last decade. Nebraska’s “brain drain,” defined as the outmigration of individuals with a bachelor’s degree or more, reached a net loss of 4,610 in 2022, a slight increase from 2020 and 2021 numbers.
Meanwhile, Nebraska’s overall population grew by more than 10,000 people from 2022 to 2023, the largest gain since 2018. Nebraska’s growth of 0.5% slightly exceeded the growth rate nationwide. Population growth in 2023 was linked to fewer deaths and immigration returning to pre-pandemic levels, Census Bureau officials said.

Read outmigration findings from UNO Center for Public Affairs Research

7.5%

Nebraska recorded the third strongest growth in real gross domestic product in the third quarter of this year, as solid numbers in agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting contributed to a growth rate of 7.5%. While GDP grew in all 50 states, only Kansas and Texas topped growth in Nebraska.

Support our work

If you enjoy reading OpenSkyLIGHTS, please support our work through a year-end, tax-free donation. Every dollar you give will foster a state where people have the evidence and analysis they need to make informed decisions — a state where all Nebraskans can thrive.

OpenSkyLIGHTS: Focus on Nebraska fiscal policy (12/29/23)

91,000

23

81%

4,610

7.5%

Support our work