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Two additional pieces of the governor’s plan to reduce property taxes paid to cities, counties and school districts will be discussed in today’s Revenue Committee hearing.
LB 1414 adds a layer of property tax revenue caps on local political subdivisions, while LB 1415 would provide state funding to those subdivisions to make up for lost revenue from property taxes.
Revenue caps constrain the budget flexibility for local elected officials who are accountable to voters for their spending choices and who know best what their entities need. And, this effort to reduce the reliance on property taxes to fund local subdivisions comes at a time when the state has already committed to reducing its own revenues through last year’s income tax cuts.
The Revenue Committee meets at 1:30 p.m.
Watch livestream of hearing on Nebraska Public Media
6.5%
A big part of the governor’s plan to substantially reduce the amount of property taxes paid to fund cities, counties and school districts includes a proposal to raise the state sales tax rate from 5.5% to 6.5%.
In hearings next week, OpenSky will share its research and analysis of LB 1315 and several other bills related to education funding and tax policy. A breakdown of the week ahead:
- Monday: A proposal to change how education is funded will be considered by the Education Committee. LB 939 would provide funding for public and private school students
- Tuesday: A bill (LB 1402) set for a hearing in the Appropriations Committee would appropriate state funds to provide grants to organizations granting private school scholarships
- Wednesday: LB 1315 is set, the bill raising the state sales tax rate, will be discussed before the Appropriations Committee
- Thursday: The Revenue Committee will consider proposals to eliminate the inheritance tax (LB 1067) and expand the state’s Earned Income Tax Credit (LB 1182)
On Tuesday, Feb. 13, OpenSky will host a noon-hour webinar with research on why sales taxes are more regressive than other tax types and the implications of possibly raising the sales tax in Nebraska.
Register for the Sales Tax Webinar
Number crunching
- 95%: The tax system is fueling profit concentration at the top of the corporate hierarchy, according to a Roosevelt Institute report. The top 10% of American firms now control 95% of after-tax profits.
- 48%: Commentary in Brookings notes that in 1976, the top 10% of income earners in the U.S. earned 34% of the country’s total income. That percentage rose to 48% by 2023, making the current period one of the highest points of inequality of the last century.
2039
By applying revenue and appropriation assumptions, the Legislative Fiscal Office provides policymakers with projections through 2039 in its updated Nebraska Long-Term Budget Planning Report.
In an OpenSky webinar on Wednesday, researchers from The Pew Charitable Trusts discussed the important tools for sustainable state budgeting. The webinar also featured an update from Sen. Wendy DeBoer (LD 10) on ARPA appropriations in Nebraska.