The introduction of new bills was the primary focus of the second week of the 2019 legislative session. By the end of Friday, the 8th day of the session, 478 bills and five constitutional amendments had been introduced. Bill introductions will conclude on Wednesday, January 23. The Legislature will be in recess on January 21 for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Public committee hearings on each of the introduced bills will begin on January 22. Selected hearings of interest to counties are listed below and the full schedule is posted on the Legislature's website.

 

On Tuesday, Governor Pete Ricketts gave his State of the State address. He outlined his budget and plans for property tax relief which include a three percent cap on property taxes levied by local governments, $1 million in aid through the Property Tax Credit Relief Fund, and a statutory floor of $275 million for the Fund. He noted that six new counties have been designated as Livestock Friendly in the last year, bringing the total to 49 counties.

On Wednesday afternoon the Rules Committee held a hearing on proposed changes to the Legislature's rules. Senators operate temporarily under the prior year's rules until permanent rules can be adopted. In 2017, the permanent rules were not adopted until the 49th day of the session. Floor debate on proposed rule changes will begin on January 22.  

 

Chief Justice Mike Heavican presented a State of the Judiciary address on Thursday. He addressed Nebraska's justice reinvestment efforts, citing successes in the state's problem-solving and re-entry courts and the role of probation.

NACO's Legislative Committee will meet on Friday, January 25 to review and take positions on 2019 legislation. The meeting will begin at 9:30 a.m. at the NACO office at 1335 H Street in Lincoln.

After brief introductory remarks, affiliate groups will meet for discussion of bills pertinent to their membership. After the groups have met, the NACO Legislative Committee will reconvene as a whole to review and take positions on the entire list of bills. All county officials are encouraged to attend or discuss areas of concern with their NACO Board representative prior to the meeting. The NACO Board of Directors makes up the NACO Legislative Committee.

Because lunch will be provided, please notify the NACO office at (402)434-5660 or [email protected] if you plan to attend. Because the Legislature is in session, parking around the Capitol may be limited. Public parking is not available behind the NACO office or in the MIPS lot. A parking garage is available at the Lincoln Marriott Cornhusker Hotel at 12th and L Streets.

Bills to cap property taxes levied by counties, require additional notice of increased tax asking, and change ag land values for school bonds will be heard by the Revenue Committee on Thursday, January 24 at 1:30 p.m. in Room 1524 of the State Capitol. The public is invited to attend and provide testimony.

 

LB158

LB158, introduced by Senator Tom Brewer, would freeze valuations for four years. The bill would set the assessed value of real property as of January 1, 2020, at the same value that was assessed on January 1, 2019, plus new improvements and less improvements that were destroyed or removed since January 1, 2019. The same process would be applied for the following three years.

 

The constitutionality of a similar proposal was questioned in a 2016 Attorney General's opinion. The opinion concluded that a valuation freeze could result in an unconstitutional lack of uniformity among property of the same class by limiting growth in the market value of property.

LB103

Under LB103, counties and other taxing entities proposing an increase in their tax asking from the prior year would have to hold a public hearing and pass a resolution. The hearing could not be held at the same time as the annual budget meeting. Public testimony would be permitted within reasonable time limits set by the board.

 

Notice of the hearing would have to be given at least 30 days in advance by publication in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the county and posting in a prominent public location at which notices are regularly posted in the building where the governing body regularly conducts its business. The notice would have to be at least the size of one-eighth page of a standard size or tabloid size newspaper with the headline in 18-point type.

 

The notice would have to include specific language stating the percentage increase in property value over the prior year, the lowered tax rate that would be needed to levy the same amount of property taxes as the prior year, the effective rate increase proposed by the board, and the proposed total budget increase percentage.

 

LB103 was introduced by Revenue Committee Chair Lou Ann Linehan.

 

LB183

LB183 would value ag land at one percent of its actual value for school district taxes levied to pay the principal and interest on bonds. The valuation for county purposes would not be affected. The state would make the necessary calculations in conjunction with the school aid formula. Senator Tom Briese introduced the bill.

 

Revenue Committee Information

The Revenue Committee is chaired by Senator Lou Ann Linehan. Members are: Senators Tom Briese, Sue Crawford, Curt Friesen, Mike Groene, Mark Kolterman, Brett Lindstrom, and John McCollister.

 

Public hearings are livestreamed through NET's link on the Legislature's website. If you are not testifying in person and would like to submit a written position letter to be included in the official hearing record as an exhibit, the letter must be delivered or emailed to Senator Linehan's office by 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, January 23. The letter must include your name and address, state a position of for, against, or neutral on the bill in question and include a request for the letter to be included as part of the public hearing record. This process applies to all committee hearings and submitting written testimony to their respective chairs.

A number of bills introduced this week could have an impact on counties. Some of these include:

Every bill introduced by the Legislature is the subject of a public hearing. Following is a schedule of bills that are of interest to counties. Due to construction at the Capitol, the Judiciary and Transportation and Telecommunications Committees will meet in the Warner Chamber.

 

Note that bills not appearing on this list may be heard during the same hearing. A complete list of hearings is available on the Legislature's website. For tips about testifying at a hearing, click here.

 

Monday, January 21, 2019 - Holiday

 

T uesday, January 22, 2019

Banking, Commerce and Insurance Committee

Room 1507 1:30 p.m.

LB77 (Williams) Change provisions of the Real Property Appraiser Act and the Nebraska Appraisal Management Company Registration Act

 

Education Committee

Room 1525 1:30 p.m.

LB115 (Blood) Change provisions related to enrollment of children of members of the military     

LB6 (Blood) Change residency provisions relating to persons on active duty and their dependents for college tuition purposes            

LB122 (Crawford) Change postsecondary residency requirements for veterans, family members, and other qualified persons

 

Transportation and Telecommunications Committee

Warner Chamber 1:30 p.m.

LB79 (Friesen) Adopt and update references to federal transportation laws and allow for electronic images of certain registration certificates

LB82 (Friesen) Change provisions relating to contracts and state aid for bridges, land acquisition for state highways, functional classification, minimum standards, six-year and one-year plans, and distribution of funds          

LB117 (Hilgers) Change provisions relating to bridge and highway construction contracts, certification of financial showing, and obtaining contract plans prepared by the Department of Transportation

Revenue Committee