There have been three property tax reduction bills debated on the floor of the legislature this month. There will be more coming up. Two of these bills advanced to the next round of debate, and one has been killed. LB 408 by Senator Briese was killed by a filibuster on a 29–8 vote. Thirty-three votes (two-thirds of all 49 senators) are required to invoke cloture and defeat a filibuster.

This bill is very simple and easy to understand. Here is a quote from the bill’s “statement of intent.” 

LB 408 would limit the annual increase in property taxes, excluding approved bonds, for all political subdivisions to three percent. The voters of the political subdivision could override the limit with a majority vote at an election. The limit would not apply to real growth value.  

Virus protocols in the capitol have severely limited the activities of lobbyists this year. But in spite of these difficulties, the rotunda of the capitol was buzzing with activity when LB 408 was being debated this week. The reason for this extra effort by the lobby was easy to see: the legislature was talking about limiting how much property taxes could be raised in any given year to just three percent.

This was not a property tax reduction bill. This bill did not take a penny out of any local unit of government’s pocket, nor did it reduce property taxes whatsoever. All the bill did was try to limit how much a taxing authority could raise property taxes from one year to the next. The 29–8 vote was a stunning display of the power these groups have over a decisive number of senators. Their message to the legislature was loud and clear; do not attempt to limit how much property tax we can levy, collect and spend. 

Looking at the votes cast for these three bills revealed something I found very interesting. Look at the vote for LB 2, LB 408, and LB 644. In each case, the same eight senators voted “no.” Six of these eight senators will face the voters again. Two of them are termed-out and can vote as they please without repercussions. It is no surprise these are all Lincoln and Omaha senators who come from left-leaning districts. To put this in perspective, were a rural senator from west of Lincoln to vote this way, they would face a serious challenge in their reelection campaign, and stand a good chance of losing their seat. These eight senators however can comfortably vote against property tax relief bills without fearing the consequences at the ballot box.

Every senator in the body has campaigned, to one degree or another, on a pledge to help reduce our crushing property tax burden in Nebraska. It has been the #1 priority of conservative senators since long before I first came to the Legislature. It is plain to see it is not every senator’s priority. Forget about reducing property taxes, these senators will not even vote to slow their growth. That is something that has to change.