The Chamber is monitoring the following bills on behalf of its members:
Economic Development
LB 754 (Synowiecki): Make a technical correction to the convention center funding act so that South Omaha areas, as well as those in North Omaha, are eligible for community development funds. Revenue Committee. Select File. Consent Calendar.
LB 784 (Howard): Nebraska Advantage -- immigration violations. A business participating in NAA would be subject to full recapture if it were found that it "knowingly" violated federal immigration law by hiring aliens who are not approved for employment in the US. Revenue Committee. General File.
LB 895 (Janssen): Nebraska Advantage -- Super Tier. Create a new NAA tier that would require investment of $10 million and the creation of at least 75 jobs that pay the higher of double the average salary in the county or the state. Revenue Committee. General File. Gay priority.
LB 899 (Kruse): City Land Reutilization Authority. Transfer from the county to the city administration of transferring abandoned property for home and business development. Urban Affairs Committee.
LB 912 (Avery): Convention Center Act. Allow privately-owned hotels to be part of a convention center/arena project. Revenue Committee. Final Reading. Avery priority.
LB 956 (Schimek): Job Training. Direct interest generated by the job training fund to training assistance for small businesses, rural businesses, and businesses located in areas of high poverty. Appropriations Committee. General File. Speaker Priority.
LB 1033 (Synowiecki): Rural Nebraska Advantage Act. Allow businesses in additional communities across the state, and in areas of high poverty in Omaha, to utilize this investment and job creation program. Revenue Committee. Amended into the super tier bill.
LB 1046 (Burling): Increase the allowable annual funding for Nebraska Advantage Rural Development Act project applications. Revenue Committee. Amended into the super tier bill.
LB 1052 (Ashford): Appropriate tourism promotion funding for the US Olympic Swimming Trials. Appropriations Committee. The Committee's budget recommendation includes $250,000 for this.
LB 1088 (Dierks): Eliminate the annual funding cap on Nebraska Advantage Microenterprise projects. Revenue Committee. General File.
LB 1156 (Synowiecki): Provide state funding for renovations of Rosenblatt Stadium. Appropriations Committee.
LB 1158 (Ashford): Provide funds for employment training programs in high-poverty areas. Education Committee.
Tax Climate
Income Tax
LB 714 (Pahls): Exclude social security benefits from income tax and homestead exemption calculations. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 737 (Fulton): Provide for an eldercare income tax credit for family caregivers. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 770 (Cornett): Exempt $24,000 per year in military retirement from taxation. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 783 (Howard): Income tax credit for adoption expenses. Revenue Committee.
LB 863 (Langemeier): Income tax cut. Expand all income tax brackets for all filers (subjecting less income to the higher rates). Revenue Committee.
LB 887 (Burling): Corporate income tax cut. Expand the lower bracket from $50,000 to $100,000, and lower the top rate from 7.807 percent to 6.845 percent. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 888 (Burling): Corporate income tax cut. Expand the lower bracket from $50,000 to $100,000. Revenue Committee. General File. Laughtenbaugh priority.
LB 974 (Gay): Income tax credit for employer provided health insurance for businesses with 25 or fewer employees that are not currently providing insurance. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 1038 (Janssen): This is to address a matter currently before the US Supreme Court that could require Nebraska to extend the tax exemption of interest on public bonds to all such bonds rather than only those issued in Nebraska. Revenue Committee.
LB 1140 (Pedersen): Exempt social security and government retirement benefits from income taxation. Revenue Committee.
LB 708 (Pahls): Sales tax holiday. For one weekend in August, allow retailers to pay the sales tax on customers' purchases of all or selected items. Revenue Committee. General File.
LB 718 (Schimek): Exempt organizations such as Habitat for Humanity from sales tax. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 722 (Engel): Base the tobacco tax on weight rather than wholesale cost for certain products. Revenue Committee. General File.
LB 762 (Avery): Sales tax holiday for school related purchases. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 944 (Synowiecki): Sales tax exemption for materials used in stage productions by nonprofits. Revenue Committee.
LB 1001 (White): Low-Income Home Energy Conservation Act. Dedicate five percent of revenues from electricity sales to provide home weatherization grants, and exempt the materials used in the efficiency improvements. Revenue Committee. Select File. White priority.
LB 708 (Pahls): Sales tax holiday. For one weekend in August, allow retailers to pay the sales tax on customers' purchases of all or selected items. Revenue Committee. General File.
LB 718 (Schimek): Exempt organizations such as Habitat for Humanity from sales tax. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 722 (Engel): Base the tobacco tax on weight rather than wholesale cost for certain products. Revenue Committee. General File.
LB 762 (Avery): Sales tax holiday for school related purchases. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 944 (Synowiecki): Sales tax exemption for materials used in stage productions by nonprofits. Revenue Committee.
LB 1001 (White): Low-Income Home Energy Conservation Act. Dedicate five percent of revenues from electricity sales to provide home weatherization grants, and exempt the materials used in the efficiency improvements. Revenue Committee. Select File. White priority.
Property Taxes
LB 732 (Kopplin): Exempt $25,000 of value from residential property for taxation purposes. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 733 (Kopplin): Provide a $25,000 homestead exemption for residences. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 931 (Cornett): Establish a formula for valuing air carrier equipment for taxation purposes. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 961 (Flood for the Governor): Property tax credit. Increase funding for the property tax credit for 2008 by $75 million. Appropriations Committee. Preliminary report does not include this.
LB 1000 (Pirsch): Property tax credit. Increase funding for the property tax credit by $100 million. Killed in Revenue Committee.
Miscellaneous Taxes
LB 913 (Wightman): Lower inheritance tax rates for aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, and nephews. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 1071 (Karpisek): Impose a one-percent tax on wire transfers of funds. Killed in Revenue Committee.
Business Regulation
LB 766 (Cornett): Require scrap metal businesses to collect information on sources of scrap and provide the data to law enforcement. Judiciary Committee. Final Reading. Cornett priority.
LB 833 (Lathrop): Increase maximum unemployment benefits to 75 percent of a person's weekly wage and 100 percent of the state average wage. Business and Labor Committee.
LB 868 (Nantkes): Prohibit delayed deposit check cashing services. Judiciary Committee.
LB 851 (Banking and Insurance): Omnibus banking and finance amendments. Final Reading. Banking, Commerce, and Insurance Committee priority.
LB 918 (Pahls): Provide that deposits from out-of-state would not count against the limit on share of state-wide deposits for a single banking company. Banking and Insurance Committee. Amended in LB 851.
LB 936 (Friend): Mandatory Union service fee for public employees. Business and Labor Committee.
LB 986 (Preister): Electronics Recycling Act. Require manufacturers of electronics products to pay registration fees of between $1000 and $7500, and $2 for each product sold in Nebraska, with proceeds used to fund an electronics recycling program. Natural Resources Committee. General File. Preister priority.
LB 1004 (Cornett): Decrease the minimum tax withholding by employers from 3 percent to 1.5 percent. Revenue Committee. Select. Consent Calendar.
LB 1010 (Hudkins): Increase the sales tax collection fee for businesses to 2003 levels. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 1016 (Lathrop): Define and restrict classification of independent contractors in the workplace. Business and Labor Committee priority.
LB 1032 (Rogert): Restrictions on computer programs used for event ticket purchases. Judiciary Committee.
LB 1042 (Howard): Restrictions event ticket re-sales. Judiciary Committee.
LB 1043 (Aguilar): Regulate security service businesses. Government Committee.
LB 1082 (Cornett): Expand workers compensation coverage to mental trauma suffered by employees who witness extraordinarily violent criminal acts. General File. Business and Labor Committee priority.
LB 1175 (White): Require five-percent income tax withholding for independent construction contractors . Revenue Committee. Amended into LB 1001.
Transportation
LB 741 (Fulton): Increase the city and county shares of motor vehicle tax revenues (by decreasing the schools' share from 60 percent to 55 percent). Transportation Committee.
LB 758 (Hudkins): Increase the gas tax by three cents. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 771 (Gay): Transfer $50 million from the Cash Reserve Fund for expressway construction. Appropriations Committee.
LB 813 (McGill): Authorize cities to create urban growth districts and issue bonds that would be paid for with city sales tax revenues generated in the districts. The financing would be used for infrastructure such as roads. As these would be basically revenue bonds, they could be issued without a public vote. Urban Affairs Committee. General File. Speaker priority.
LB 846 (Fischer): Substitute five percent wholesale fuel tax for a portion of the per-gallon tax. Revenue Committee. General File. Fischer priority.
LB 881 (Stuthman): Tax ethanol at three cents per gallon (paid for by the plant owner) with proceeds used for road construction. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 961 (Sen. Flood for the Governor): Transfer $15 million from the General Fund to the Roads Operations Cash Fund. Appropriations Committee. Preliminary report does not include this.
LB 1034 (Louden): Designate in statute the state expressway system. Transportation Committee.
LB 1035 (Louden): Cash Reserve Fund transfer of $16 million for segments of the expressway system that are authorized to receive federal funding. Appropriations Committee.
LB 1129 (Flood): Require the Department of Roads to consider in its prioritization process the positive impacts of completed expressways. Transportation Committee.
LB 1139 (Johnson): Cash Reserve transfer of $73 million expressway construction. Appropriations Committee.
Education
LB 970 (Gay): Eliminate the Learning Community common levy. Education Committee.
LB 987 (Raikes): Student testing and achievement. Create a new commission to administer student testing and accountability programs. Education Committee.
LB 1157 (Raikes): Student testing and achievement. Require uniform statewide mathematics reading, and science testing. Education Committee. Select File. Adams priority.
Agriculture
LB 946 (Burling): Tax ethanol at two cents per gallon, with proceeds used for the ethanol development fund. This would replace the grain and sorghum tax. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 1040 (Louden): Tax ethanol instead of corn to pay for water programs. Killed in Revenue Committee.
LB 1174 (Dierks): Restrict corporate involvement in agriculture. Agriculture Committee. General File. Dierks priority.
General
LB 761 (Avery): BRAC Task Force. Form a task force to study ways to avoid losing facilities in the next round of military base closings. Government Committee. General File.
LR 224 (Fulton): Encourage law enforcement agencies in Nebraska to seek authorization to enforce federal immigration law. Killed in Judiciary Committee.
LB 1170 (White): Allow government and individuals to sue employers of illegal immigrants to recover the cost of public services accorded to the immigrants. Judiciary Committee.
LB 963 (Friend for the Governor): Require individuals to verify their lawful presence in the US to receive public benefits such as government grants, contracts, loans, professional licenses, commercial licenses, retirement benefits, welfare benefits, health benefits, disability benefits, housing, postsecondary education assistance, food, and unemployment benefits. Killed in Judiciary Committee.
LR 233CA Christensen: Constitutional amendment to prohibit any preferential treatment in employment and contracting by state and local government based on race or gender. Judiciary Committee. Withdrawn by Senator Christensen.
LB 998 (Gay): Provide funding for the Nebraska Innovation Zone Commission to conduct a development study of the I-80 corridor between Omaha and Lincoln. Appropriations Committee.