At OpenSky, we prioritize data and evidence to ensure our work is a credible, unbiased and reliable resource for policymakers, media and all Nebraskans.
Our primers aim to provide an overview of the issues important to creating fair and just outcomes for everyone.
“A Healthy Nebraska,” updated in 2023, provides an overview of Medicaid and CHIP funding in Nebraska.
“Taking Ownership,” released in 2023, explores the history of property taxes in Nebraska with information on the valuation process, how revenues are distributed and efforts the state has made to lower property taxes.
“Investing In Our Future,” updated in 2025, explores how Nebraska has paid for K-12 education in the past, how it does so now and discusses the perceived inequities of our current system.
“Sustaining the Good Life,” updated in 2025, examines the use and funding of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in our state.
Keep tabs on policy changes under consideration as the Nebraska Legislature meets each year.
Using census data, OpenSky produced fact sheets showing the diversity among Nebraska’s 49 legislative districts.
OpenSky compiled profiles of Nebraska’s public school districts to help taxpayers to better understand education funding.
Learn about proposal to replace most state and local taxes with a single tax on consumption.
Learn about proposals for taxpayer-funded scholarship programs that threaten funding for public schools.
88 According to analysis from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), 88 of the nation’s largest and most profitable corporations paid zero federal corporate income taxes for 2025. Collectively, the organizations across a variety of industries made more than $105 billion in taxable income last year. Had they paid the statutory federal income […]
Today is the deadline for filing federal and state income taxes. At OpenSky Policy Institute, we have spent 15 years studying the impact of tax and budget policy decisions on Nebraska families. As United States Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. famously stated, “Taxes are the price we pay for a civilized society,” and […]
-9.14% According to analysis by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, from December 2024 to December 2025, the number of Nebraskans receiving benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) declined by 9.14%, largely credited to changes in eligibility implemented by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) signed in July 2025. SNAP participation […]
$10.76 billion The Legislature sent mid-biennium General Fund budget adjustments to Governor Jim Pillen’s desk for signature this week, with a total of $10.76 billion in spending for the biennium, representing a reduction of $243 million over the biennium, or less than one percent over the previous budget. If all bills on Final Reading and […]
34 LB 1071, the mainline budget bill advanced to final reading this week with 34 legislators voting in support. The advancement comes after considerable debate and multiple failed cloture motions. As OpenSky reported last week, the impasse in the Legislature largely centered around a $3.65 million appropriation included in the Appropriations Committee’s budget and debated […]
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Resources At OpenSky, we prioritize data and evidence to ensure our work is a credible, unbiased and reliable resource for policymakers, media and all Nebraskans. Primers Our primers aim to provide an overview of the issues important to creating fair and just outcomes for everyone. Medicaid “A Healthy Nebraska,” updated
