Julie and I were really glad to be back in the District this past weekend, which gave us the opportunity to attend the parades at Brady Days and the Logan County Fair in Stapleton. We then made the trip up to Mullen to attend the annual Hooker County Fair beef barbeque. I always enjoy meeting with constituents and hearing their concerns on a firsthand basis.

The special session of the 108^th Legislature has now entered its second full week. Last week began with a bang when several additional bills were introduced. Although the special session was called for the single purpose of reducing property taxes, many Senators found creative ways to introduce a total of 105 bills and legislative resolutions, a record for any special session.

Our rules require us to reference each bill to the committee of jurisdiction, and committees are required to hold a public hearing for every bill and resolution introduced. After the bills are heard in committee, each committee chair can decide if they want any bills heard in their committee to be voted on by the committee and moved to the floor. I don’t expect many bills to make it to the floor.

Additionally, any bill moved to the floor must be scheduled by the Speaker to be heard before it can be debated. I do not see the Speaker scheduling any bill that does not fit the call.

LB1, LB2, and LB3 are the bills introduced on behalf of the Governor. LB1 was referred to the Revenue Committee because it is the primary funding bill that creates some new taxes and removes sales tax exemptions on several others to fund property tax relief, as well as setting caps on local spending. LB2 and LB3 were both referred to the Appropriations Committee because they deal with the uses of state funds and make adjustments to state spending.

LB1 contains many revenue sources that the working group discussed but, in several cases, it also includes items that the working group rejected. The Revenue Committee spent most of last Tuesday hearing testimony on LB1. Most of the testimony was opposition testimony because every special interest group had some issue with certain items in the bill. However, the better lobbyists were clear that they only opposed certain items and could remove their opposition if certain changes were made to the bill. Others made it clear that they would oppose the bill in any form. Those individuals effectively lost their seats at the table by taking the approach. We even heard the President of the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce suggest there was no property tax problem to fix. I have heard some amazing statements before, but that one is hard to fathom.

One of the testifiers on LB1 was Todd Roe from Brady, the c-owner of Lazy RW distillery. I called Todd the night before suggesting that his testimony could go a long way to reducing the proposed tax hike on distilled alcohol. He did an amazing job sharing how this significant tax increase would impact their operation. He arrived in Lincoln before 9:30 and did not get to testify until late afternoon. I had many lobbyists and Senators suggest that his testimony was perhaps the best they heard all day. Thank you, Todd, for your commitment and your contribution to the local economy.

The Legislature will likely begin floor debate on Thursday once the Revenue Committee spends the first part of the week finalizing its proposal. Given the multitude of changes and comments on LB1, I expect the committee to use another bill to be the final vehicle to carry the proposed changes. Monday and Tuesday will be used to develop a final bill that can garner at least 33 votes for cloture. I am optimistic that we can achieve it. Not everyone will be happy with the final bill, but I hope everyone considers the alternative and focuses on actual numbers and not sound bites.

Meanwhile, there is no clear idea at this point as to how long the special session will last.

I look forward to continuing to hear from you regarding issues that are important to you. It is a privilege to serve as your State Senator, and I will continue to give my full effort to make a positive difference for the District and the State. You can reach me at mjacobson@leg.ne.gov or 402-471-2729.