The special session of the Nebraska Legislature has been underway for two weeks, and Governor Jim Pillen’s original proposal to cut property taxes has shrunk.
Disagreements have arisen, and no resolution is in sight.
Pillen pivoted this week from his own property tax relief proposal to embrace a plan pieced together from several special session bills. The Revenue Committee members are now planning to work through a new proposal in Legislative Bill 9, rather than Pillen’s original proposal in LB 1.
The currently preferred plan seeks to offset about $1.8 billion in school-related property tax revenue. That version reduces the list of currently tax-exempt items that would be taxed under the Pillen plan.
The new plan would raise taxes on alcohol and would begin taxing candy, gambling and soft drinks, but the new plan would be with lower rates than Pillen proposed. For example, the cigarette tax would go from 64 cents per pack to $1.36, instead of the $1.64 proposed earlier.
Pillen came into the special session aiming to cut overall property taxes people pay by roughly 50 percent.
On Thursday afternoon, Pillen put out a release, praising many lawmakers from all political stripes who were working hard “to deliver transformative property tax reform to Nebraskans.”
He then added criticism of senators who are not on board with the work, as a resolution remains elusive. Some state senators on Wednesday said Pillen has interfered with the legislative deliberations.
*Additionally, the Federal Emergency Management Agency is opening four Disaster Recovery Centers in Siouxland this week.
Recovery specialists from FEMA and the U.S. Small Business Administration will provide information on available services, explain assistance programs, and help survivors complete or check the status of their applications.
The Disaster Recovery Center for Woodbury County is located at the SIMPCO office building in Sioux City. Both that location and another center in Sioux Rapids in Buena Vista County opened on Wednesday.
Two others opened on Thursday, with those being at Spirit Lake in Dickinson County and Emmetsburg in Palo Alto County.
Area rivers started flooding seven weeks ago in late June.
*In other news, the average price of self-serve unleaded gasoline dropped by one cent over the last week, averaging $3.23 across Iowa.
Since the end of June, the price has dropped by a combined eight cents, including a drop of five cents over the last two weeks.
That price of $3.23 is down 44 cents compared to one year ago.
Many Sioux City and surrounding town stations are selling unleaded this week in the range from $2.87 to $3.24. The national average unleaded price is $3.46, which is down four cents from a week ago.
*Additionally, a groundbreaking will be held at 11:00 a.m. Friday for the new waterpark, Siouxland Splash, that will be located at 3820 Highway 75 North.
Plans show that Siouxland Splash will be built on the city’s north side for roughly $7 million by summer 2025.
There is currently no private waterpark in Sioux City, while within 100 miles there are such facilities in Storm Lake and Sioux Falls. City officials say it will be a great quality of life addition.
Back in December, the Sioux City Council approved the sale of 10 acres of land to Frontline Development LLC to create the waterpark.
