LINCOLN, Nebraska (KOLN) – The road to Governor Jim Pillen’s tax plan has been long and bumpy: from a failed attempt in the 2024 regular legislative session to introducing LB 1 in the special session to finding a new home in LB 9. And with debate looming next week, it doesn’t look like it’s going to get any easier.
The Nebraska Legislature’s Finance Committee was scheduled to meet at 8 a.m. Thursday to vote on the amended version of LB 9, but a few language discrepancies forced a last-minute backtracking by the bill’s authors.
“I’m concerned,” said Senator Jana Hughes. “I want some property tax relief.”
Hughes originally introduced LB 9 as a more incremental alternative to Pillen’s proposal that would have the state cover all operating costs for K-12 education. Now it is the primary tool for Pillen’s plan.
“Everything has changed quite a bit,” Hughes said.
The amended version would reduce the school levy cap from $1.05 to $0.25 for the 2025-26 fiscal year. Hughes said that would mean about 100 schools would immediately face funding difficulties, but Revenue Committee Chair Lou Ann Linehan said that was being worked on.
“Some senators in the Department of Education are working on solutions to these problems right now,” Linehan said. “I’m not looking for perfection. I’m looking for language that expresses what we want to express.”
Linehan made progress in explaining what they planned to say during a 10 a.m. briefing Thursday. In a room full of state senators and their staff, she and State Senator Brad Von Gillern worked to unveil the complex package, weaving together examples of savings in state budgets.
“I think the meeting went really well,” Linehan said. “I think people understand it and have a better understanding of what we’re trying to do.”
But for some, this meeting seemed to have no effect at all.
“I think I left with as many questions as I had before,” said state Sen. George Dungan, the bill’s most vocal opponent on the Finance Committee. “I’ve talked to my friends on the left. I’ve talked to my friends on the right. I’ve talked to my friends in the middle. And every single group of people I’ve talked to has problems with this plan.”
With the bill facing a flood of motions and obstructions, it will likely have little time on its way to a vote.
“It’s a little bleak right now, but I don’t know,” Hughes said. “I guess sometimes things like this happen and then the phoenix rises from the ashes. So I remain hopeful.”
There is no clear indication as to when LB 9 will be discussed, as the Revenue Committee has yet to vote on it.
The legislature adjourned for the week on Thursday and is expected to reconvene Monday afternoon.
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