Legislature to Reconvene on July 20

While Nebraska is “crushing the curve” of COVID-19 and beginning to reopen, Speaker Scheer announced that the Legislature will be called back into session on July 20, 2020. There are 17 days left of the 60 day session, with hundreds of bills to consider and the major agenda items of this session still awaiting debate. 

Property tax relief is still at the top of my agenda. While we were back in session for three days to allocate emergency funds for the Governor for COVID-19, the Revenue Committee introduced an amendment to the property tax relief proposal. This amendment doesn’t change the major components of the previous bill, but adds a few minor adjustments. In addition to property tax relief, the Legislature will also need to pass our annual budget adjustment, which contains over $50 million in flood relief funding. 

Many senators’ priority bills are still on the table and up for discussion. There were over 400 bills introduced this session with hundreds of additional Legislative Resolutions. The Legislature has a tall task before it with 17 days remaining in this biennium, and the challenge only becomes greater when considering our state’s current financial situation.

The Tax Commissioner reported that gross General Fund receipts for April were $469 million, which is 41% below the certified forecast of $795 million. Tax refunds for April were $124 million, which is 21.4% below the certified forecast of $158 million. Net receipts for April were $345 million, which is 45.9% below the certified forecast of $637 million. The Net General Fund receipts for the fiscal year 2019-20 were $4.001 billion, which is 0.1% above the certified forecast of $3.997 billion. These numbers don’t spell the end for property tax relief, as much of the dip on income taxes can be attributed to Nebraskans filing ahead of the July 15 extended deadline. Like all budgets, this year’s crunch will be about defining priorities and investing our state’s resources where it matters most. 

As always, I welcome your input on issues important to you. Follow along on my Facebook and Twitter pages, both entitled “Senator Julie Slama” for more updates, or contact me directly at Senator Julie Slama, District 1 State Capitol, PO Box 94604, Lincoln, NE 68509-4604; telephone 402-471-2733; email: jslama@leg.ne.gov