There are 49 state senators in Nebraska, representing districts with an average population of 37,000 people each. Though the population numbers for each district are similar, each district has its own set of unique interests and legislative solutions. Many pundits focus on partisan divides in the Legislature, but little time is spent on what is often a far greater hurdle to progress: the urban-rural divide. With current district boundaries, 25 senators represent urban areas, while 24 senators represent rural areas. Those 24 senators representing rural Nebraska compose about 80% of the state’s square mileage.  As is true with any entity, our state has a limited amount of resources. Rural senators often advocate for those resources to be invested in rural Nebraska, while urban senators support investing the resources in our cities and suburbs.

Of course, this does not mean that urban senators are in direct opposition to legislation for rural areas or vice versa. Senators from urban and rural areas work hard to promote solutions to issues in their districts. It just happens that many of their solutions do not directly benefit our rural communities, and many of the solutions to our problems in rural areas do not directly benefit their urban districts. 

To break a filibuster in the Legislature, there needs to be 33 votes to stop debate and move forward. A 25-24 vote divide means legislation must draw support from both urban and rural senators to pass. 

The clearest example of the urban-rural divide and its impact on policy making is property tax relief debate of the 2020 session. Rural senators, including me, have stood firmly in support of property tax relief, while urban senators have leaned in favor of business incentives. Those two issues came to a head in 2020, when business incentives were set to expire and property taxes pushed rural communities to a breaking point.  

The stars aligned this year between urban and rural interests. LB1107 was passed, creating over $1 billion in new property tax relief over the next several years and initiating a new business incentives program. This session, I will continue to lead the charge with our rural senators to continue to work with our urban colleagues to achieve structural property tax relief.

I remain hopeful that we can come together and pass continued relief for Nebraskans whose bottom lines suffer due to high property taxes. Our homeowners, farmers, and small business owners are facing the most uncertain times in a generation. There is little that the Legislature can do to steady the ship of our national economy, but we can take a solid step in the right direction in Nebraska by focusing on property tax relief in the 2021 Legislature. I will continue to lead with rural senators to keep fighting to help our small communities thrive!

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.