Tax Policy

Withholding taxes show impact of Nebraskans still out of work

Withholding taxes show impact of Nebraskans still out of work

It is no secret there are economic consequences to the COVID-19 pandemic, but some figures might be misleading policymakers and people’s perception of state revenues and the economy. While Nebraska is weathering the pandemic’s economic storm relatively better than many states, there is still reason to pause when looking at the revenue numbers. The federal...

By Sarah Curry

67% of Omaha town hall participants dissatisfied with property tax compromise

67% of Omaha town hall participants dissatisfied with property tax compromise

At our fifth and final Virtual Property Tax Town Hall of the summer, Omaha area voters and taxpayers had the chance to weigh in on a number of online straw polls on property tax issues. While most of these poll questions were asked of previous participants, the Legislature’s recent advancement of LB1107 gave us the...

By Adam Weinberg

Legislature advances property tax relief, not reform

Legislature advances property tax relief, not reform

On August 5, Nebraska lawmakers debated and advanced LB1107, a comprehensive tax and economic package including new property tax relief measures. The Legislature previously debated a separate plan, LB1106 in July, which failed to receive the required 33 votes to overcome a filibuster. LB1107 is a compromise in every sense of the word. Both Republicans and...

By Sarah Curry

Southeast Nebraska voters split on property tax reform issues

Southeast Nebraska voters split on property tax reform issues

Participants in the Platte Institute’s Southeast Nebraska Virtual Property Tax Town Hall voted in five online straw polls on property tax issues. The totals below may not add to 100% due to rounding. While these voters expressed similar sentiments to previous respondents on the impact of COVID-19 on their priorities, and a desire to see...

By Adam Weinberg

Property tax transparency measure gets 89% support at Northeast town hall

Property tax transparency measure gets 89% support at Northeast town hall

Voters and taxpayers from Northeast Nebraska joined the Platte Institute’s third Virtual Property Tax Town Hall of summer 2020, and like participants in the previous online events, they had the option to vote in five online straw polls about various property tax issues. While participants expressed similar levels of support for cutting government spending to...

By Adam Weinberg

Analysis: Property tax reform depends on economic recovery

Analysis: Property tax reform depends on economic recovery

Lawmakers are set to hold a hearing today on decoupling the state’s tax code from federal CARES Act tax policies that provide emergency economic relief to those most impacted by COVID-19, which will reduce business and employee Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) in one way or another. Because these CARES Act policies will reduce many Nebraskans’...

By Sarah Curry

Legislative Testimony: AM3093, Decoupling from CARES Act tax provisions

Legislative Testimony: AM3093, Decoupling from CARES Act tax provisions

Chairwoman Linehan and members of the Revenue Committee, my name is Sarah Curry, and I am the Policy Director for the Platte Institute. I am here today to testify in opposition to AM3093. It is no secret to any of the committee members that the Platte Institute supports conformity to the CARES Act tax provisions....

By Sarah Curry

Poll shows more voters oppose blocking COVID-19 business tax relief

Poll shows more voters oppose blocking COVID-19 business tax relief

NET’s Fred Knapp reported on Twitter this week about a tax issue poll conducted by the campaign committee of Nebraska state Sen. Lou Ann Linehan, who is also the chair of the Revenue Committee. According to the documents provided by the campaign, the poll was a telephone survey of 509 Nebraska voters conducted from July...

By Adam Weinberg

Why the CARES Act is a different situation than the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017

Why the CARES Act is a different situation than the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017

Nebraska, like every state, is experiencing economic uncertainty amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The state will need to use caution as it makes revenue and spending decisions throughout this crisis. However, several structural tax changes have already been made at the federal level that will promote a stronger economic recovery in Nebraska. On March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief,...

By Sarah Curry