Nebraska

Nebraska governor pushes for property tax reform

Published

1 year ago

June 26, 2024

Nebraska governor pushes for property tax reform

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen called a special legislative session, starting on July 25, to try to win lawmakers’ support for his property tax reform plan.

The plan involves funding Nebraska’s K-12 schools through sales taxes — eliminating certain sales tax exemptions and raising taxes on advertising, cigarettes, vaping products and alcohol — rather than through property taxes, according to comments by Pillen in his monthly radio call-in show, the Nebraska Examiner reported.

Pillen’s property tax reform push bears some similarities to property tax relief efforts in Texas and in Colorado that succeeded. But Pillen’s previous attempt, a bill known as LB388, failed in the state Senate in April.

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen has called a special legislative session to try to pass his property tax reform plan.

Governor.nebraska.gov

A spokesperson for Pillen did not respond to requests for comment. The sponsor of LB388, state Sen. Lou Ann Linehan, did not respond to a request for comment.

The bill would allow municipalities to increase property tax requests above the maximum by the amount budgeted for bond debt service.

It would also exclude from its definition of “school district taxes” any property taxes levied for bonds.

For cities and counties, bonds were outside of the cap that was negotiated, according to Lynn Rex, executive director of the League of Nebraska Municipalities.

Still, the legislation, which included the Property Tax Growth Limitation Act, the Property Tax Relief Act and the Advertising Services Tax Act, drew an onslaught of lobbying by a wide range of groups.

LB388 would have levied a 20% tax on vaping products, a $1 per pack tax on cigarettes and a 25% tax on CBD and hemp products. It would levy a 7.5% tax on firms doing business in Nebraska whose combined gross advertising revenue exceeds $1 billion. It also would tax lottery tickets, storage services, dry cleaning and veterinary services for household pets.

According to lobbying disclosures, groups in favor of the bill include the Nebraska Association of County Officials, the League of Nebraska Municipalities, the American Cancer Society and Nebraska Cattlemen.

Lobbying against it were the Nebraska Vape Vendors Association; the Cannabis Factory; Phillip Morris; Meta; Google; TechNet, a trade group representing technology CEOs and senior executives; Americans for Prosperity, a conservative advocacy group linked to the Koch brothers; the Association of National Advertisers; Walmart; and the Lincoln and Greater Omaha chambers of commerce.

Also opposed was the Nebraska State Education Association, a public school teachers’ union, which did not respond to a request for comment.

“There was an incredibly misleading campaign at the last minute against LB388 from the Nebraska Grocery Industry Association,” said Rex. “They led the effort against it … Senator after senator was getting pummeled with emails. They said, ‘This is going to tax food.’ … It would have added a sales tax on pop and candy. I don’t know of anything more flagrant in terms of an effort of misrepresentation against a bill.”

Ansley Fellers, executive director of the Nebraska Grocery Industry Association, said the group’s main concerns were the “increased cost of doing business” and that the bill was not a net tax reduction.

“One, soda and candy are food, they’re edible products,” she said. “[The bill] will hit lower-income individuals hardest. It’s also hard to justify taxing any food product right now given the kind of inflation we’re seeing.”

Fellers added, the way the bill was written would have taxed granola bars but not licorice, kettle corn but not Kit Kats.

“The governor has said that he’s looking more at the state taking over funding for public schools,” she said. “That’s an expensive proposition. … That would be a several-billion-dollar shift [onto sales taxes].”

According to Rex, exemptions added over recent decades have chipped away at sales tax revenues and property tax revenues in Nebraska. All were “legitimate exemptions at the time for Nebraskans to compete with other states,” she said, but there was a problem: other states’ legislatures then put together reimbursements for local governments through state aid programs as they narrowed the tax base through exemptions. In Nebraska, it all got shifted over to property taxes.

In March 2011, “they got rid of the one and only reimbursement to municipalities” in Nebraska, Rex said. She added, Nebraska voters have been confused by rhetoric about rising valuations. The problem, she said, isn’t increased valuations — “that’s the basis on which we get loans,” she noted — but consistently rising property taxes.

From fiscal 2022 to 2023, the total valuation in Nebraska increased by 11.44%, and the taxes levied during that period rose by 5.7%.

“It is critically important that the state legislature … try to address the incremental shifts over to property taxpayers that have happened over the last four decades,” Rex said. “It’s so important to make sure that local governments have the revenue that they need to do their jobs. … Just because your valuation goes up, doesn’t mean your taxes have to go up.”

The governor and his team are working with state senators to come up with a package that can pass the legislature during the special session, she said.

LB388 would have changed the current lid on restricted funds for municipalities and counties to 3% or the change in the consumer price index, whichever is greater: “That is a lid on basically all sources of revenue for municipalities and other political subdivisions except schools,” Rex said.

The schools are not under the current 2.5% lid on restricted funds. They have always had a different lid.

“Municipalities, counties, everybody else — we’re just hanging in the wind,” Rex said.

Source link

Click to comment

Nebraska

ESPN’s Analytics Reveal Strong Prediction in Illinois vs. Nebraska Matchup

Published

1 hour ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

ESPN’s Analytics Reveal Strong Prediction in Illinois vs. Nebraska Matchup

On Saturday afternoon (3 p.m. CT, Peacock), No. 13 Illinois (8-2, 1-0 Big Ten) will host No. 23 Nebraska (10-0, 1-0 Big Ten) in Champaign for an early-season ranked-on-ranked Big Ten showdown.

The Cornhuskers made their season debut in the AP poll this Monday. Two days later, they dismantled – by 30 points – a Wisconsin club that entered the season ranked in the top 25, knocking off the Badgers 90-60 in Lincoln.

Blood in the water. 🦈📹https://t.co/LKzCqN3tcz
— Nebraska Men’s Basketball (@HuskerMBB) December 11, 2025

ESPN’s matchup predictor makes its pick for Illinois-Nebraska

Nov 29, 2025; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers head coach Fred Hoiberg watches from the sideline during the first half against the South Carolina Upstate Spartans at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-Imagn Images | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

Yet on Saturday, according to ESPN’s analytics, the odds are not at all in Nebraska’s favor. The matchup predictor gives Illinois a 77.5 percent chance of staving off the visitors this weekend.

And it makes sense for two key reasons: 1) Home-court advantage. Playing at home, especially in Big Ten action, already gives any team a massive leg up. For example, the Illini, despite losing 14 conference games over the past two seasons, have just five league losses on their home floor during that stretch.

2) Illinois is really good.

The AP poll doesn’t always reflect reality. Both of these clubs may, in fact, be better than their respective rankings in that poll. Nevertheless, the difference between the No. 20 team and the No. 25 team isn’t nearly as drastic as the difference between the No. 5 and No. 10 team.

The Illini should absolutely dominate the Cornhuskers on the glass. Given the relative shortcomings of Brad Underwood’s squad in that department in its past few outings, it’s possible the margin is closer than it should be, but Illinois will undoubtedly control the boards to at least some extent.

And given the level the Illini defense has been operating at, specifically on first attempts in each possession, the Cornhuskers are going to find points extremely tough to come by. Offensively, Illinois will surely rely heavily on its talent once again, staying away from any complex schematic design and simply letting its players operate.

As the old adage goes: if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. And with an Illinois offense currently ranked No. 5 in KenPom in terms of efficiency, it very clearly isn’t broken.

As Nebraska has done all season thus far to its opponents, Fred Hoiberg’s unit figures to make the Illini appear somewhat less than. But between the size and talent disparity, not to mention the home-floor advantage, Illinois will still very likely put an end to Nebraska’s exceptional undefeated start – even if it is a tighter battle than the Illini would like.

Source link

Nebraska

York lottery player wins $3,125 in Nebraska Pick 4 drawing

Published

14 hours ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

York lottery player wins ,125 in Nebraska Pick 4 drawing

LINCOLN, Neb. (KSNB) – One lucky player who bought a Nebraska Pick 4 ticket for the Wednesday, Dec. 10, drawing is holding a ticket worth $3,125.

The ticket was sold at Pump & Pantry No. 16 at 109 Lincoln Avenue in York. The winning numbers from Wednesday’s Nebraska Pick 4 drawing were 02, 00, 01, 05.

Winning Nebraska Lottery tickets expire 180 days after the drawing. Tickets with total prize amounts of $501 to $19,999 must be claimed by mail or at a regional lottery claim center. Additional information about claiming prizes can be found at nelottery.com or by calling 800-587-5200.

Nebraska Pick 4 is a daily lotto game from the Nebraska Lottery. Players select four numbers, each from a separate set of digits from 0 through 9, for a chance to win up to $6,000. Players choose one of six bet types to set their play style and potential prizes. The odds of winning the $3,125 prize in Nebraska Pick 4 are 1 in 10,000.

Click here to subscribe to our KSNB Local4 daily digest and breaking news alerts delivered straight to your email inbox.

Source link

Nebraska

Emmett Johnson leaves Nebraska with sterling legacy, All-America status

Published

1 day ago

December 11, 2025

Press Room

Emmett Johnson leaves Nebraska with sterling legacy, All-America status

LINCOLN, Neb. — One month ago, on the heels of a breakthrough performance by Emmett Johnson against UCLA, Nebraska launched a Heisman Trophy push for the junior running back.

Johnson enjoyed the limelight. Fans flocked to see him during an appearance in downtown Lincoln and at the high school championship games inside Memorial Stadium. He traveled home to Minneapolis during the Huskers’ bye week and visited his high school, Academy of Holy Angels. He had stopped in previously, but this trip was different.

“It was like a celebrity came to the school,” Holy Angels coach Jim Gunderson said.

In the final two games of the regular season with Nebraska, Johnson rushed for 320 yards, but the Huskers lost them in ugly fashion against Penn State and Iowa to cap a 7-5 regular season. As fast as the Heisman campaign began, it was over — but worthwhile, nonetheless.

Johnson ran this season in part so that running backs at Nebraska who follow him can fly. He leaves Nebraska with a sterling legacy.

On Wednesday, Johnson became the first Nebraska player to receive first-team All-America mentions since linebacker Lavonte David in 2011 — and the fourth running back in the past 70 years, matching Mike Rozier (1982 and ’83), Jarvis Redwine (1980) and Jeff Kinney (1971). His final year ranks among the top five in school history by a running back. Stack it alongside Rozier’s 1983 Heisman season, Lawrence Phillips in 1994, Ahman Green in 1997 and Ameer Abdullah in 2013.

Nebraska coach Matt Rhule and his staff aim to use Johnson’s success to help bring backs to Lincoln who can finish what he started.

“It’s very much not in vogue anymore not to wait your turn,” Rhule said. “Sometimes, it’s like, ‘I’ll just go here and do this, just go there.’ But guys like Emmett had chances. And they stayed. And he deserves everything that he’s getting.”

Johnson was named the Big Ten running back of the year, a first at Nebraska. Last Friday, he declared for the 2026 NFL Draft, foregoing his final season of eligibility and the Dec. 31 Las Vegas Bowl.

High praise for the B1G’s top back@Emmett21Johnson pic.twitter.com/g7EhpUE2EP
— Nebraska Football (@HuskerFootball) December 11, 2025

What separated Johnson this year?

• His 1,130 yards in Big Ten play were the most by a Power 4 back in conference play. He stands alone with 1995 Heisman winner Eddie George as the only Big Ten players to total 1,100 rushing yards and 300 receiving yards in one season of league play.

• Johnson led the nation by accounting for 40.8 percent of his team’s total yards.

• He was the fourth FBS player since 2017 to average 120 yards rushing and 30 yards receiving.

• His 1,821 yards from scrimmage and 1,451 rushing ranked second and third, respectively, in the FBS.

In form true to his roots, Johnson proved wrong skeptics who believed he could not handle 20 carries per game in Big Ten play.

Does everyone realize how freaking good Emmett Johnson is for @HuskerFootball ? Dude is a straight balla. Quick, decisive, tough, great as a receiver. One of the most underrated RB’s in the Country!
— David Pollack (@davidpollack47) November 28, 2025

“He has always had that chip to prove people wrong and be great,” Gunderson said. “This is how he envisioned it going, and he wasn’t going to be denied.”

Four years ago, on a Sunday in mid-December, less than a week before the signing period opened, Johnson accepted a Nebraska scholarship offer. Ron Brown extended it.

A month earlier, Scott Frost, the Nebraska coach from 2018 to 2022, fired four offensive assistants. Brown, with 24 years of experience as a Nebraska assistant under three head coaches, was elevated late in that season from offensive analyst to running backs coach. He reviewed tape of Johnson, who scored 42 touchdowns and rushed for 2,500 yards at Holy Angels in 2021.

And Brown wondered why no big school had snatched up Johnson.

“I was perplexed,” Brown said. “Because when I saw Emmett play, I thought, ‘This guy is special.’”

Brown had recruited Abdullah from high school in Alabama to Nebraska in 2011. And Brown coached Abdullah in his back-to-back 1,600-yard seasons as a junior and senior before an NFL career that continues this year in its 11th season. In Johnson, Brown saw some of Abdullah’s vision, change of direction, endurance and ability to recover.

Brown quizzed Gunderson, the Holy Angels coach, about Johnson.

“I probably threw 100 questions at him,” Brown said, “looking for something that might be a little bit off, something that I had missed.”

Nothing.

“Coach Brown could just see the intangibles,” Gunderson said, “the stuff that isn’t measured. He saw the potential and the kind of kid who was going to work and who believed in himself.”

Johnson started six games as a redshirt freshman in 2023. He started five in 2024 and found his rhythm in the Nebraska offense when Dana Holgorsen arrived as coordinator last season. In December 2024, Johnson considered entering the transfer portal.

Holgorsen’s commitment helped get him to stay.

“ I think he just wanted to know that somebody had a plan for him,” Gunderson said.

The plan was never to leave Nebraska early. Johnson simply wanted the chance to receive a heavy workload.

He got 32 offensive touches against Cincinnati in the 2025 opener, 24 against Michigan, 23 against Maryland and 29 against Northwestern. In November, after quarterback Dylan Raiola was injured, Johnson stacked three games with 31 opportunities apiece and a 27-touch effort against Penn State.

“This dude really did what he said he was going to do,” Nebraska tight end Luke Lindenmeyer said.

His reliability never came into question.

“I’m so proud of Emmett, man,” senior cornerback Ceyair Wright said. “I think his success is a product of who he is as a person, how he treats people and the work that he puts in.”

Emmett Johnson shouldered a heavy load late in the season, garnering 27-plus touches in each of his final five games for Nebraska. (Harry How / Getty Images)

His humility and care for others rate as Johnson’s most admirable trait. Johnson said he wanted to share credit with his teammates for the accomplishments of this season. He rushed for 177 yards in the first half against Iowa and 217 for the game. But he stressed in the aftermath that he felt badly for older teammates who played their final games in Lincoln on Black Friday.

Turns out, he was among them. Johnson takes pride, he said, in building a new reputation for Nebraska running backs — more than a decade after Abdullah departed, three decades after Green and 42 years after Rozier’s Heisman.

“It matters a lot,” Johnson said, “because Nebraska is a special place. I want to be able to have recruits look at this place and know it’s special. It is special. I’m blessed to be the one doing that and helping. It’s bigger than just football.

“There are a lot of great humans here. That’s what I want to help push.”

Source link