Elections occur every other November. But taxpayers vote with their feet every day, and these votes should be counted and tallied just like the votes for a November election. A “Great Pandemic Wealth Migration” began when the coronavirus pandemic caused Americans to move to work-from-home employment. This meant workers were no longer tied to aphysical...
Program Overview The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the Food Stamp Program, is the most extensive federal nutrition assistance program in the United States. It serves as a “safety net” program that helpslow-income individuals and families access and purchase healthy food. The program is funded by the Department of Agriculture (USDA) and...
The origins of favorable tax treatment for nonprofit and not-for-profit organizations in the United States were based on the admirable ideals promoting community service and public good. However, today the United States’ federally tax-exempt economy makes up 15% of gross domestic output (GDP) and spans 1.8 million organizations. A total of $3.3 trillion dollars of...
Based on free-market principles, President Trump’s proposal to increase Argentine beef imports to lower domestic prices is problematic for several reasons. Market Distortion and Unintended Consequences. In the free market, prices are determined by the natural forces of supply and demand, which convey important information to producers and consumers about what the market will tolerate. ...
Nebraska’s property taxes have risen to fourth highest in the United States, according to a 2025 study from the Tax Foundation using 2023 tax data. Illinois (1.83%) has the highest taxes as a share of home value, followed closely by New Jersey (1.77%). Following New Jersey is Connecticut (1.48%) which is only slightly higher than...
Nebraska’s Truth-in-Taxation season brings surprises each year, shining a light on local government tax increases. That’s because Nebraska’s Truth-in-Taxation law requires local governments to notify property owners of proposed tax increases as a prelude to public hearings about the tax proposals. Residents of Omaha were hit with another set of unsustainable tax increases in 2025, as...
Tune in to the latest episode of Nebraskanomics as we welcome the 41st Governor of the State of Nebraska, Governor Jim Pillen. During the episode Governor Pillen and Platte Institute Chief Executive Officer Jim Vokal discuss how we provide property tax reform for Nebraskans, the importance of making the most of federal funds, and what’s...
Utah passed the nation’s first Truth-in-Taxation (TNT) law in 1985, giving the Beehive State 40 years to refine and finesse their property tax program. Nebraska has adopted a similar law which can be improved by adjusting the schedule for when Truth-in-Taxation hearings occur so that the TNT process precedes budget adoption. Utah’s tax transparency procedure...
The Occupational Board Reform Act (OBRA) was passed in 2018 and became effective in 2019. It requires legislative committees of jurisdiction to review all occupational licenses in the state, roughly 20% per year, on a five-year rotation. These reviews examine whether the licensing requirements are adequate or excessive by current standards. The committees then submit...
Nebraska lawmakers can deliver stronger transparency and greater tax relief by consolidating and tightening Nebraska’s property tax caps. Nebraska has both a Truth-In-Taxation (TNT) transparency law and property tax caps for K-12 school districts and then separate caps for all other local governments. By comparison, several less-fiscally-responsible states impose more strict property tax caps. Nebraska...
[Note: This is the final in a series of Research Notes by Platte’s intern, focusing on county zoning and agriculture issues. A full paper dealing with these issues will be published later this fall.] Over the past decade, Nebraska’s legislature has repeatedly sought to address issues related to the Conditional Use Permits (CUPs) and Special...
[Note: This is the fifth in a series of Research Notes by Platte’s intern, focusing on county zoning and agriculture issues. The final (sixth) note will include discussion of a bill currently before the Legislature.] In addition to Iowa, Nebraska’s other neighboring states have faced zoning challenges related to permitting new livestock operations. While Iowa...
A recent post on substack authored by Dr. Ed Timmons caught our eye. This particular post highlighted rankings of universal recognition laws for occupational licenses around the country, and Nebraska met the “Gold Standard” as can be seen from the image below. This image is just one of many to be found in the most...