The Full Platter Archives - Platte Institute

LR2CA Emerges as partial solution to property tax problem

LR2CA, a constitutional amendment proposed by Senator Tom Brandt, emerged as an interesting option with significant support during Friday’s special session. While this proposal would not immediately change property taxes, it would open a constitutional door for legislators to tax different property types differently. Article VIII of the Nebraska Constitution defines the types of taxes...

By Laura Ebke

Research note: the PSC’s role in ratemaking

Ratemaking is one of the oldest and most important responsibilities of many Public Service Commissions (PSCs) around the US. While the issue isn’t as important as other regulatory tools for the Nebraska Public Service Commission (NePSC) due to the state’s size and the commission’s limited jurisdiction, this research note will provide an overview of ratemaking...

By Alexander Endorf

Nebraska’s regulatory environment has room to improve

Last week, the Mercatus Center of George Mason University released its 2024 edition of “Snapshots of State Regulations.” As with most rating systems, this allows states to compare themselves to other states and examine particular strengths and weaknesses in their systems. These strengths and weaknesses explain good and bad rankings and provide focus areas for...

By Laura Ebke

Jim Vokal’s Weekly Email: I’m Frustrated Again…

I’m frustrated – again. It’s the time of year when we are all braving the heat and the release of countless budgets across the state. And the majority of the elected officials crafting and approving budgets are making the case not only for a Special Legislative Session to reduce property taxes, but reinforcing my number...

By Jim Vokal

Special Session Legislative Testimony

The Special Legislative Session to address property taxes has officially begun, and our team is hard at work advocating for sound policy and opposing proposals that would hurt Nebraska. So far this session, we have provided testimony on the following bills: LB 1– This bill, carried by Senator Linehan, is Governor Pillen’s plan to...

By Jim Vokal

Chevron deference overturned: a victory for separation of powers

The last couple of weeks of June is often a time of great interest for those who watch the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) because they mark the release of the final decisions for cases that were heard during the court term. The Court begins hearing cases for the term in October, and...

By Laura Ebke

Property Tax Reform Policy Vision

The purpose of Platte Institute’s tax vision document is to lay out the principles that Platte Institute believes should guide the ongoing property tax reform efforts. First, we will lay out actions to avoid with explanation. Then we will argue for accomplishing fundamental policy deliverables that are necessary for the successful delivery of property tax...

By Michael Lucci

Research Note: Florida’s REINS Act

A decade ago, Florida was far from the model for economic freedom from regulatory burden. The state ranked 8th among 44 states with 168,795 regulatory restrictions according to a review of states with the highest regulation count done by the Mercatus Institute at George Mason University. Florida now leads the nation in migration gains, even...

By Stephen Trainer

Research Note: The Texas Example

As previously discussed, economic statements are crucial for quantifying the impact of regulations and ensuring that state agencies thoroughly evaluate all options and understand the downsides before regulating the state’s economy. Furthermore, these reports should be independently reviewed to verify the legitimacy of the agencies’ findings. Texas, unsurprisingly, hits all the positive marks for impact...

By Stephen Trainer

Research Note: Utah’s Regulatory Sandbox

Editor’s Note: As the 5th of 7 planned research notes by our summer intern, Stephen Trainer, this post discusses the concept of regulatory sandboxes. The Platte Institute has supported several regulatory sandbox efforts, including a comprehensive one (which would cover multiple industries) and the most recent one (LB587 in 2023/24), which provides for an “insuretech...

By Stephen Trainer

Research Note: Regulatory Experiments–Idaho, Virginia

A few states outside the midwest provide promising templates for regulatory reform and modernization, a pressing issue for Nebraska. Idaho and Virginia notably embarked on a mission to unshackle citizens from a growing administrative state, as discussed by a Mercatus Study in 2019. Six years ago, Virginia passed the Regulatory Reform Pilot Program that tasked...

By Stephen Trainer

Research note: a case study of success of the REINS act in state regulatory reform

First introduced in 2009 and subsequently passed by the US House of Representatives in 2023, the REINS Act, formally known as the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act, represents a legislative endeavor to augment Congressional oversight concerning federal regulations with substantial economic ramifications. Specifically, it aims to empower Congress to assert greater...

By Stephen Trainer

Research note: Cost-Benefit Analysis in Regulation

The primary autoregulative process when state agencies begin promulgating rules and regulations is the cost-benefit analysis (CBA). Despite having many names across states, the CBA or impact statement is an important system in which agencies self-evaluate the effectiveness and scope of a proposed rule’s regulatory impact on business and government. Moreover, these reports play an...

By Stephen Trainer

Research Note: Regulations in Nebraska and Iowa

Note: This Research Note is the first in a planned series of notes by Platte’s summer interns. Despite sharing a border, Iowa and Nebraska diverge on many legislative topics, especially the regulatory review process. Iowa has been noted to have “one of the best-designed review structures in the country,” according to the Institute for Policy...

By Stephen Trainer