As the glow of Nebraska’s annual Spring Game leads to dreams of hearing “We’re Number 1” at Memorial Stadium, there is one area of policy where Nebraska is “number one” in our conference/region—but being number one is not a good thing. The Archbridge Institute recently released its first State Occupational Licensing Index, and Nebraska’s position...
Nebraska has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to overhaul its tax code in 2023. A successful tax reform will pay dividends for generations. Nebraska has large revenue surpluses, and the best thing to do with the surplus revenue stream is to return most of it to the productive private economy through thoughtful and sustainable tax reform. This...
The Flatwater Free Press is Nebraska’s first independent, nonprofit newsroom focused on investigations and feature stories that matter. Today on Nebraskanomics, I’m joined by Matt Wynn, the executive director of The Flatwater Free Press. Tune into our conversation to learn about government payroll reporting and more government transparency projects in Nebraska. You can also listen...
North Carolina made state tax history in 2021 by passing a law to eliminate the state’s corporate income tax by the end of 2026. Although the Tarheel State will be the first to repeal its corporate income tax, it probably won’t be the last. In fact, Missouri is advancing a bill to slash its corporate...
Nebraska has a progressive state income tax. This means that higher income earners pay a greater portion of their income in taxes than do lower income earners. If Nebraska lawmakers enact LB 754, a comprehensive income tax reform bill, the state will still have a progressive income tax. Nebraska’s top income tax rate of 6.64%...
Nebraska’s Revenue Committee advanced an amendment to LB 754 out of committee on a 7-1 vote last week, bringing Gov. Pillen’s income tax reform plan to the full Unicameral for debate. The bill is a tour de force of income tax reforms. The individual and corporate income taxes are both overhauled by the bill, with...
Nebraska lawmakers took a key step towards historic tax reform last week. Revenue Committee lawmakers voted to consolidate several tax reforms into LB 754 and to advance the tax package out of committee on Thursday, March 16. Nebraska’s legislative progress comes not a moment too soon, as major tax reform proposals are advancing across the...
Nebraska has one of the most aggressive regimes for taxation of non-resident income in the country, according to new rankings from the National Taxpayers Union. While raising tax revenues from non-Nebraskans might seem like found money, it also ensures that many non-Nebraskans will never visit Nebraska for work purposes. Tax compliance is heavy for remote...
Nebraska’s Revenue Committee is advancing a broad overhaul of the state’s tax code. These reforms, if enacted, would bring the Cornhusker State in line with the ongoing state tax revolution. During the post-pandemic era, states are turning away from progressive tax structures and creating lower, flatter income taxes. And mobile workers are moving towards states...
Mississippi lawmakers advanced legislation to enact full expensing this week, with separate bills passing in the legislature’s House and Senate. H.B. 1733 passed Mississippi’s House on an overwhelming 112-3 vote, while S.B. 3101 passed the Senate on a 51-0 vote. The bills both make full expensing the permanent tax treatment for qualifying investments in both...
This year marks the fourth consecutive legislative session that the Nebraska Legislature has heard and considered significant workforce licensing reform. The Platte Institute was engaged actively in that topic as early as 2016. LB16 was introduced by Senator Tom Briese and contains two main elements: universal recognition of licenses from out-of-state and a “fair chance”...
Nebraskans are more reliant on broadband connectivity now than ever. Connectivity is important for people accessing government services, online banking, education, health care, and remote work. Connectivity is important to Nebraska’s largest industry – agriculture. Nebraska’s farmers and ranchers need access to agricultural technologies to increase yields and conserve resources. Small businesses are also very...
At the writing of this blog, the 108th Nebraska Legislature is entering the 7th week of its 90-day session. A massive 812 bills were introduced in the first 10 days of the new session, each receiving a public committee hearing before full-day floor debates begin. Striking this year is the attention the Governor and legislative...
In recent years, states around the country have started experimenting with different methods of voting. Ranked Choice Voting. Instant Runoff Voting. Open Primaries. Approval Voting. All of these methods of voting are being proposed or experimented with in an assortment of configurations in different jurisdictions. From local elections to statewide elections; from primary elections to...