17 days into a special legislative session aimed at ambitious property tax relief, Nebraska lawmakers have sent a series of property tax reform bills to the desk of Governor Jim Pillen’s to be signed into law.
Pillen roped lawmakers back into the Capitol on July 25, and after a rough month, State Senators eked out three bills to lower property tax payments for residents.
The main bill, LB34, passed on a 40-3 vote and will take effect immediately upon the Governor’s signature due to an emergency clause. The bill would “frontload” 1107 property tax credit income tax credits in a way that will automatically deliver the credit to taxpayers — removing the need to file for an income tax return . Additionally, LB34 also establishes the School District Property Tax Relief Credit Fund, which will transfer about $750 million into the General fund to provide relief from school district tax levies. This transfer amount will increase the following year.
LB2 (passed 33-11) and LB3 (passed 36-9) are also on the way to the Governor’s desk, which will implement various budget cuts and cash transfers to provide an additional $185 million in relief.
Lawmakers passed all three bills before taking a recess at 1 p.m.