LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts will pursue a package of income and property tax cuts next year even though his plan stalled in the contentious legislative session that ended Tuesday.
Ricketts said he’ll meet with lawmakers over the summer to tweak the plan in hopes of building a larger coalition. His comments came before lawmakers adjourned from a session dominated by budget problems and squabbles over debate rules.
“Now that we have the experience of this past session behind us and heard what some of the concerns were, we’ll be working with senators to try to address those concerns,” Ricketts said in an interview with The Associated Press in his office.
The governor’s plan stalled in part because of pressure from farm group lobbyists who said it didn’t do enough to offset years of rising property taxes. Some senators criticized the income tax provisions as well, saying they would have favored the wealthy and not delivered the economic benefits Ricketts had promised.
“It really undermined our ability to get this legislation passed,” he said.
The package would have lowered the state’s top income tax rate in phases in years when revenue increased by more than 3.5 percent. It also would have changed the way agricultural land is valued and imposed a statewide cap on how quickly valuations could grow. Ricketts said he still believes the package needs to address both income and property taxes.
Sen. Jim Smith of Papillion, who sponsored the tax package, said he has no plans to abandon the proposal but will look for changes to improve its odds of passing next year.
“I think maybe it needs to sit for a while so we can have more conversations,” he said.
Ricketts still praised the session as a success. He touted his initiatives approved by lawmakers that will merge state agencies and reduce some regulations for audiologists and bank executives.
A sharp decline in state revenue dominated the session as well, forcing lawmakers to balance the budget despite a projected $900 million shortfall for the next two-year cycle.
Lawmakers approved two separate budgets, one to address a shortfall in the current fiscal year and one for the two-year period that begins on July 1. The budget that won final approval increases spending by less than 1 percent - far less than the historical average - but was also criticized for its cuts to programs designed to serve people with addictions and mental health problems.
Sen. Ernie Chambers of Omaha criticized lawmakers for not overriding more of Ricketts’ vetoes, particularly on a bill that would have eliminated a two-year waiting period before felons can vote. Chambers said the session was the worst he had experienced in his four decades in the Legislature and criticized lawmakers who aligned themselves with the governor.
“You talk about the poor, the sick, the aged, the disabled, and then you turn your back on them,” Chambers said.
Lawmakers spent the first third of this year’s 90-year session squabbling over their internal debate rules. Conservative senators proposed changes that would have made it easier to overcome filibusters and force through their agenda. Progressive and moderate senators fought the change and ultimately prevailed in maintaining the status quo.
The session was also noteworthy for the abrupt resignation of state Sen. Bill Kintner of Papillion.
The conservative Republican legislator left office in January after he retweeted a comment that implied that participants in a women’s march were too unattractive to sexually assault. Lawmakers were on the verge of expelling him for a pattern of behavior that included cybersex on a state computer with a woman he met online.
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