Some want states and the federal government to impose more taxes on automation, robots, and other business equipment. Tax Foundation Senior Policy Analysts Garrett Watson and Katherine Loughead discuss why that’s not as futuristic of an idea as it sounds. Resources mentioned on this podcast: Increasing the Tax Burden on Capital Investment and Automation Hurts...
The Nebraska Legislature’s Revenue Committee is the gatekeeper for all things tax. Eight state senators hold public hearings and decide which tax proposals move on from the bill introduction stage and receive consideration from the whole Legislature. Through 2019 and 2020, the committee was deeply dug into a process of trying to move forward on...
As the Nebraska Legislature gets started for the new biennium, there have already been a good number of bills filed relating to taxes and our state’s economy. I am anticipating more of these bills to be filed in the upcoming days, dealing with property taxes, income taxes, sales taxes, motor vehicle taxes, and more. A...
On 12/27 President Trump signed the legislation (H.R. 133) that sent businesses and individuals with additional COVID-19 relief. The enactment of this legislation not only created another round of PPP money, but more importantly it ensures tax deductibility for business expenses paid with PPP loans. This clarifies that loan forgiveness is not considered taxable income...
The Nebraska Department of Revenue announced that Nebraska’s gas tax, formally known as the motor fuels tax, will be declining in the new year. The total tax will decrease from 33.2 cents a gallon to 28.7 cents a gallon. The reduction follows a previous hike in the excise, which took effect in July. At the...
According to a new report by the Tax Foundation, Nebraska has a combined federal, state, and local tax rate of 29.13% on wireless services. Most of the tax is at the state and local level, comprising 19.30% of the total tax. For context, Illinois is the highest at 32.20% and Idaho is the lowest at...
Many Nebraska cities levy local sales taxes in addition to the state rate. Cities and counties in Nebraska are authorized to levy a local sales tax under the Local Option Revenue Act (applicable to cities) or Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 13-319 to 13-326 (applicable to counties). This law allows cities and counties to levy their...
The October General Fund tax revenues are in and it looks like Nebraska is not in danger of having a large budget deficit like some states around the nation are experiencing. According to the October figures, fiscal year net tax revenues are 7% above the certified forecast and for the month of October they are...
That is the focus of a most recent white paper from a private sector consulting firm, MultiState. They conducted an analysis of the 50 states and their likelihood of enacting a tax increase next year. Nebraska is in the “lower risk” category thanks to not having a large budget deficit, having an accepted amount in...
Chairwoman Linehan and members of the Revenue Committee, my name is Sarah Curry, and I am the Policy Director for the Platte Institute. Since there has been broad agreement in this committee that Nebraska needs tax modernization, I want to start today with a bit of legislative history. Nebraska’s inheritance tax law was adopted in...
Politics and policy are not always moving in the same direction, and tax policy was one area where many voters appear to have sent in a split ticket on the federal and state level in the 2020 election. On the federal side, a likely Biden victory means a new administration will hold the veto pen...
Nebraska’s 2020 election results are in and Initiative #431 passed, allowing the state to levy a 20% tax on all gross gaming revenue generated within licensed racetracks. Along with companion ballot measures approving expanded gambling, this means slot machines and table gambling will be allowed along with their respective regulations. The licensed horse racetracks in...
Today, the 2021 State Business Tax Climate Index was released. Nebraska’s rank has remained unchanged from last year, which is unsurprising, because structural reform has not been accomplished in the Cornhusker State. However, states rising in the rankings, like Kentucky and North Carolina, have significantly overhauled their tax codes and have seen the positive benefits...
In any organization, maintaining the status quo can create an opening for competitors to gain on you and even surpass you. That is exactly what’s happening to Nebraska with our latest ranking in the Tax Foundation’s 2021 State Business Tax Climate Index. In 2020, despite passing major tax legislation, Nebraska lawmakers did nothing to structurally...