What is the cost of government and what should it be? • Nebraska Examiner

Tax policy is not a thrilling topic at the barbecue, but the taxes we pay are perennial subjects of conversation in Nebraska. As recipients of the property tax, we (counties, municipalities and schools) are as sensitive as anyone to the issue.

With a special session called explicitly for property taxes, we offer our perspective on how to approach them. We do not claim that doing any one thing in particular will “fix” property taxes, but we can offer general guidelines to inform policy discussions. Determining a proper tax structure boils down to how we collectively answer four basic questions:

• What does government need to pay for?
• How much is needed?
• Who do we want to pay for it?
• How do you want them to pay?

Years ago, these questions were answered in a way that led to our current tax structure. They are worth revisiting now.

What does government need to pay for?

Let’s first distinguish between “needs” and “wants,” which is difficult. Gov. Jim Pillen has suggested that not everything government pays for is a need, and we applaud his effort to “clean out the closets” by removing various state unfunded mandates on local governments.

Political subdivisions are creatures of the state. Their “needs” are largely determined by state statutes. The Legislature has assigned to counties the duties of roads, bridges, law enforcement, jails, courts, elections, and the collection of certain taxes and fees.  Municipalities are responsible for community and economic development; providing public safety, including law enforcement, fire protection and EMS; public transportation infrastructure such as streets, roads and bridges; safe drinking water; wastewater treatment; solid waste management; libraries, parks and recreation centers; and other quality of life services. The schools have the duty to provide free instruction for children between the ages of 5 and 21 in the common schools of our state.  This requires teachers, para-educators, bus drivers, coaches, administrators, janitors and other workers.

How much is needed?

Counties, municipalities and schools have an annual public budgeting process. Counties are required to publish one- and six-year plans on what the highway superintendent will do with roads and bridges. Law enforcement needs are mandated by state statute and oversight agencies such as the Crime Commission. The jails are given basic requirements by the state. Elections are overseen by the secretary of state.

Schools have numerous mandates from the state government, federal government and courts.  These rarely come with the necessary funding.

Municipalities also face increasing costs and budgetary challenges due to unfunded mandates imposed by state and federal laws, regulations and court decisions, ranging from additional training requirements to preparation of reports and documents to be filed with the state or federal government.

A crucial point is that the cost of government has risen independent of CPI. Goods government pays for – gravel, asphalt, law enforcement vehicles and equipment, road graders, etc. – are not purchased at Walmart or off Amazon. Governments seek bids from a limited pool of vendors, and individual municipalities, counties and school districts do not always have the purchasing power to drive prices down.

Who do we want to pay?

As a state, we have determined local taxpayers should pay for items of a local nature. Traditionally, those have been considered (for counties): roads, bridges, law enforcement, jails, courts, tax collection and elections. For schools, it has been classroom teachers and facilities.  For cities and villages, local taxpayers pay for municipal employees’ salaries; municipal facilities and equipment relating to law enforcement, fire protection, streets and roads; safe and plentiful drinking water; wastewater treatment; solid waste management; libraries; and parks and recreation centers.

These all have a mix of local and statewide impact. Roads and bridges, for instance, are critical segments of our state’s network of highways and byways. Law enforcement, courts, and the jails are all geared toward the prosecution and defense of state laws. Elections are for local, statewide and federal races.

High-quality public education gives every child the skills needed to compete and thrive in the 21^st century.

How do we want them to pay?

The three main sources of revenue are property, income and sales taxes. Income taxes should relate to a citizen’s ability to pay but can fluctuate from one year to the next.  Areas with less income would be unable to pay for basic needs.

Sales taxes relate to a person’s willingness to pay, which is a measure of the ability to pay, but also trap more sparsely populated areas in a loop of increasingly diminished infrastructure. Property taxes are generally stable and relate to the value of real property, but not necessarily to an owner’s ability to pay.

Nebraska has consistently chosen property tax as a major funding source for local governments due to its stability. However, we are not limited to just the property tax. Other states have adopted a tax structure which diverts sales and income taxes to the communities in which they were raised.

That said, we have experienced that when the state experiences economic downturns, state aid to local government can and will be sharply reduced or eliminated. If this were pursued, we advocate for placing local funding guarantees in the Constitution.

Conclusion

We do not advocate for any particular position or policy regarding how taxes should be governed. Instead, we advocate for a thoughtful approach to what government should be responsible for. Then it is the obligation of the Legislature to determine how to raise the revenues necessary to have government perform its assigned duties. In fact, raising “the necessary revenues of the state and its political subdivisions” has been in our Constitution for over 100 years.

Schools, counties, and municipalities are the primary recipients of the property tax, and these taxes are spent on the basic infrastructure and essential services to Nebraskans that allow our communities to grow. Our organizations support taking pressure off property owners with additional state property tax relief, so long as our communities and services to citizens aren’t negatively impacted.