The Cato Institute’s recent release of its new “Freedom in the 50 States” index should provide Nebraska policymakers with some good information to consider as they head into the 2024 legislative session. Cato is a national policy think tank focusing on individual liberty, limited government, and free markets. The bottom line in the index: Nebraska’s...
Writing in the pages of National Review, Platte CEO Jim Vokal and I described Nebraska’s 2023 tax reform as the best in the nation. Property taxes and income taxes were both cut and reformed in 2023. And that’s not all. Coupled with meaningful reforms in 2022, the total two-year tax relief will be worth $3000...
As any high school civics teacher tries to impress upon distracted teenagers, the federal and state legislative branches pass laws, and the executive branch is responsible for carrying them out. But to facilitate the implementation of laws, administrative rules are created to provide guidance related to the law after it is codified. In Nebraska, the...
Nebraska has the potential to become an exemplar in using artificial technology to bridge the gap in the State’s workforce by providing employment opportunities to those currently excluded from the labor market. Nebraska boasts one of the lowest unemployment rates in the United States, standing at 2 percent, tied for the fifth lowest in the...
Nebraska policymakers are being called upon to address a problem that afflicts nearly every state across the country. Rapidly rising property values are stressing homeowners, particularly when property taxes rise proportionate to property values. As a result, homeowners are turning to public officials for solutions. It is fair to say that this problem exists in...
Nebraska led the states with the nation’s best tax reform in 2023, overhauling its income tax and property tax in one fell swoop. Nebraska’s individual and business income tax will both fall to 3.99% in coming years, boosting the state’s competitiveness in the nation’s most tax-competitive region. Nebraska’s fiscal accomplishments in 2023 will naturally leave...
Nebraska’s Opportunity Scholarships Act program, enacted in LB 753, creates a pathway for Nebraska students to learn and thrive in the education environment that suits them best. The program provides $25 million per year for roughly 5,000 students to enroll in a private school rather than a public school. Nebraska’s school choice program is funded...
The Platte Institute has focused significantly on workforce licensing reform for the last seven years. From making it easier for natural hair braiders to practice their craft to requiring reviews of every license required by the state to work on a five-year cycle, we’ve seen some successes in our efforts to make it easier for...
Property owners in southeast Nebraska should brace for sticker shock ahead of next year’s property tax bills. The Board of Governors for the Southeast Community College system (SCC) voted on Tuesday to raise property taxes by roughly 40% across the 15-county service area, according to coverage by the Lincoln Journal Star. Tuesday’s preliminary approval will...
The Platte Institute is honored to be nominated for a State Policy Network Bob Williams Award: Biggest State Win. As a part of our nomination for this award, we outlined three historic victories: Nebraska Income Tax Reform: LB754 is a tour de force of income tax reforms. The individual and corporate income taxes are...
Many Nebraskans (this writer included) took big gulps when they opened their property valuation notices this past week. In Crete, our valuations went up 23%. While we can understand the increase in valuations because property sales have risen, and property valuations are based on market value, these increased values also have the possibility to significantly...
Back in January, we told the story of Geraldine Tyler’s challenge of Hennepin County, Minnesota’s taking of her property to collect back property taxes, and her loss of any equity interest remaining. While no one denies that the government can seize property to collect back taxes and fines, the question is really about how much...
State and local governments are on the front lines of providing core government services. They are also on the front lines of competing for jobs and economic growth. Therefore, state fiscal policy should produce revenue for core government services by applying low, competitive tax rates to a broad tax base with limited exemptions. That is...
On this episode of Nebraskanomics Platte Institute CEO Jim Vokal welcomes Jonathan Williams, Chief Economist and EVP for the American Legislative Exchange Council. During the episode the two dive into the significance of state tax policies and their impact on economic competitiveness. Jonathan also shares valuable insights from the Rich State’s Poor State’s report, a...