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Nebraska ag leaders frustrated with tax reform direction

Nebraska ag leaders are expressing frustration with the direction of tax reform in the Nebraska legislature.

The Nebraska Agriculture Leaders Working Group says a Revenue Committee proposal to take money from the property tax credit fund and use it to fund income tax cuts is “the exact opposite” of what the group wants to see done. They want the legislature to focus solely on property tax relief.

But Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts tells Brownfield income tax cuts need to be part of the tax package.

“We’re looking to bring property tax and income tax together so we can build that coalition of both urban and rural senators. Because quite frankly, we don’t have enough rural senators by ourselves to be able to pass property tax relief,” Ricketts says. “We really have to find that combination of both income and property tax relief to be able to get both.”

Ricketts says it’s all part of the legislative process.

“It is a process and we’ll have to wait and see how it comes out of the Revenue Committee,” he says. “We’re going to continue to work with Senator Jim Smith, who is the chair of that committee, as well as the other members, to really come up with a package that we can get through three rounds of voting and to my desk for signature.”

Ricketts is promoting LB 338, which would value ag land on its income potential rather than its market value. It would also impose a 3.5 percent annual cap on statewide ag land valuation increases.

AUDIO: Governor Pete Ricketts