$218 million

As OpenSky Policy Institute previously reported, Nebraska was awarded $218 million from the federal government in the first year of the Rural Health Transformation Program, established as part of H.R. 1, known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Nebraska’s application outlined seven different areas of focus for the program, including healthy food access, improved rural health access, rural workforce acceleration, telehealth services, rural behavioral health supports, assisted living supports and technology investments. 

At the federal level, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services established the Office of Rural Health Transformation to ensure oversight of the program, and this week, OpenSky testified in support of a similar measure at the state level in a hearing for LB 1229, introduced by Senator Paul Strommen. Policy Analyst Trevor Toteve outlined the benefits of state-level oversight, including increased transparency for the legislature, Nebraska’s health care community and citizens. Toteve also outlined the risk of federal clawbacks of funds that may be spent outside the guidelines of the program and the need for strict oversight to ensure compliance. Additionally, establishing the fund could safeguard federal grant dollars from the frequent practice of cash fund sweeps to fill budget holes or supplanting already-appropriated rural health investments. 

The Appropriations Committee will consider LB 1229 for advancement to general file. Amendments may be necessary to ensure federal compliance issues raised by the Department of Health and Human Services.

$79 billion

OpenSky’s analysis on the recently-passed federal budget and its impacts on Nebraskans is ongoing, including the federal government’s investment of $79 billion to the Department of Education. The bill largely rejected the Trump administration’s call to eliminate billions of dollars from the budget, maintaining most K-12 school expenditures year over year. 

Specifically, Congress rejected the defunding of Title IV funds A and B, which provide student support services and before-and-after-school programs, respectively. Also spared from the chopping block were funds related to the McKinney-Vento Act, which supports students experiencing homelessness, investments for school safety infrastructure, and the Rural Education Achievement Program.

In the higher education space, the bill includes a $3.3 billion appropriation, notably maintaining prior spending for Pell Grants, which are earmarked for students with exceptional financial need. It also maintains the current maximum grant at $7,395 annually. It also increased funding to Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority Serving Institutions, which have experienced instability in federal funding over the past two years. 

$50,000

The Nebraska Legislature’s Education Committee considered a bill this week that would have set a statewide minimum base salary of $50,000 for all certificated teachers, regardless of experience or educational attainment. It would also adjust this base salary biennially based on the percentage change in state General Fund receipts. LB 1182, introduced by Senator Loren Lippincott, mirrors a campaign currently collecting signatures to place the measure on the ballot for Nebraskans later this year. Both measures would seek to replace Nebraska’s current funding allocated to the Tax Equity and Educational Opportunities Support Act (TEEOSA), which takes into account both local needs and resources to determine state investments. 

OpenSky’s Education Policy Fellow Connie Knoche testified in the hearing for LB 1182, citing evidence from the Learning Policy Institute that fair and sufficient allocation of financial inputs to schools is necessary to improve student learning outcomes. Knoche also cited the Bellwether Institute, which found that it is a best practice for state school funding formulas to provide school districts with the resources needed for high-quality education while creating the flexibility to account for differences in student populations and economic conditions from district to district. 

Additionally, the measure is likely to cause significant financial strain for Nebraska’s school districts. For example, according to the November, 2025 Tax Rate Review Committee Report, Nebraska can expect a two-year average of state-revenue growth of 4.7% and a five year average growth of 4.9%.