Nebraskans pay their taxes faithfully to local governments, reasonably expecting their hard-earned money to be spent for the improvement and advancement of their local communities. While most tax dollars are eventually spent by local governments directly in their communities, where is this money kept from the time it is collected to when it gets spent? ...
When it comes to economic development, workforce attraction, and keeping young families rooted in Nebraska, many of our communities face a fundamental bottleneck: housing supply. While much of the national conversation around housing affordability focuses on high interest rates and construction costs, one piece of the puzzle remains within our own control. Government regulations, outdated...
Most of us picture lawmaking as a public process: a bill is introduced, debated, amended, approved by the legislature, signed by the governor, and scrutinized carefully. But agencies are increasingly bypassing that public process. In Washington and state capitals such as Lincoln, agency staff can use guidance documents—such as memos, policy letters, and online instructions—to...
In the last three posts on this topic, we’ve examined the shifting sands of Nebraska’s demographics. We’ve seen that we are actively losing the regional race for domestic migration (Post 1), that our population is rapidly concentrating along the I-80 corridor (Post 2), and that our rural workforce is aging out at an unsustainable rate...
If you want to understand the future of Nebraska’s economy, you have to look at who is building it. In our previous post, we mapped the geographic reality of Nebraska’s population: steady growth consolidating along the I-80 corridor, while rural counties face compounding demographic declines. But population size is only half the story. The composition...
For Nebraska to reach its full potential, we must become a state where young families and workers want to build their futures. No single policy will make that happen. It requires sound tax policy, sensible regulation, greater freedom for individuals and businesses, attractive jobs, strong schools, and an affordable cost of living. For young families,...
Nebraska has a lot to be proud of in the Archbridge Institute’s 2026 State Childcare Regulations Index. Ranking a solid 10th nationwide with a childcare freedom score of 5.48 out of 10, the Cornhusker State stands as a competitive leader in keeping childcare regulations manageable. Within the West North Central region, Nebraska ranks 2nd, demonstrating...
When measuring a state’s economic vitality, the most honest metric isn’t always in a government budget report—it’s in a moving van. Demographics are the bedrock of our workforce, tax base, and future prosperity. If we want to evaluate how Nebraska is truly performing, we have to look at whether we are attracting new talent or...
Nebraska hit a major wage milestone in January 2026 when the state’s minimum wage rose to $15 an hour, the final step in a voter-approved 2022 plan. But the debate did not end there. Soon after, the Legislature passed LB 258. The law replaced inflation-based increases with a fixed 1.75% annual increase starting in 2027....
NOTE: Before he left, our previous intern provided a blog post based on a paper he’d written for school, discussing the challenges of big cities (especially Omaha) in our state. For his inaugural post, our current intern, Ethan Roth, has provided a colorful discussion of some of the challenges in rural Nebraska below, based on...
If you’re in Omaha’s Blackstone District and you’re looking for a good cocktail, you might stumble into a tucked-away speakeasy now called the “Censored Shop.” Until recently, it went by “Barber Shop Blackstone.” According to the Nebraska Examiner, that name wasn’t a trick—it was a nod to the owners’ dad, who spent his life as...
Every year, the “National Movers Study” from United Van Lines and the “U-Haul Growth Index” provide a real-time heat map of the American economy. The 2025 results are in, and they deliver a clear message: while the mass exodus from high-tax coastal states continues, the “quiet competition” for the middle of the country is heating...
On February 25, 2026, Governor Jim Pillen signed Legislative Bill 663 into law while at the Nebraska Dairy Convention and Trade Show in West Point, Nebraska. Introduced by Senator Tanya Storer, and championed by The Platte Institute, LB 663 improves county zoning processes for agricultural producers by establishing a more uniform, transparent, and timely system...
In today’s economy, the high cost and low availability of childcare are major barriers for working families. While policymakers often look toward taxpayer-funded subsidies to solve the problem, recent research suggests a different culprit: state-level overregulation. Nebraska stands at a critical juncture in this national conversation. According to the 2024 State Childcare Regulations Index from...