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Bill would provide homeowners with tax cut

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BY NANCY HICKS / Lincoln Journal Star

Tuesday, Jan 16, 2007 - 10:44:23 am CST

When newly elected Sen. Tom White of Omaha was campaigning  last year, he heard plenty of complaints about taxes — property taxes.

Most constituents, perhaps 75 to 80 percent, complained about the high property taxes they have to pay whether their income is rising or dropping, he said.

White plans to introduce a bill that would provide every homeowner in the state up to $500 in property tax cuts, at a cost of $250 million a year.

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The $250 million is about the same price tag as Gov. Dave Heineman’s tax cut plan focusing on income tax and the estate tax. White says his plan focuses on the tax that most Nebraskans complain about.

“I knocked on about 14,000 doors and I didn’t hear anything about the income tax or the estate tax,” said White about his campaign conversations with voters. “But property taxes are breaking their backs,” he said.

The $500 property tax credit would be available in the good years, when the state has extra revenue, White said in an interview Tuesday morning.

White’s plan offers up to $500 in property tax relief through an income tax credit. So a homeowner who paid $400 in property taxes would get just $400 tax credit.  Someone who paid $1,000 in property taxes on their home would get the full $500 credit, he explained.

Every two years senators would decide whether the state had enough money to provide the property tax relief.

White’s plan joins several other tax cuts proposals as senators begin to look at what to do with an estimated $300 million surplus.

The ideas cover the tax landscape, including income tax cuts, a one-half cent reduction in the 5.5-cent sales tax, and several ideas on easing property taxes.

White says he doesn’t want to permanently change the property tax base the way the state aid formula does. He is looking for a simple way to provide property tax relief during years when the state has extra income and sales tax revenue.

The temptation during the good revenue years is to expand services, he said. But when times are good and the state has extra income the first in line for help should be the property taxpayers, he said.

“In the good years I want to look them in the eye and say, ‘You’re first.’”

White said he expects about a dozen senators will co-sign his bill.

Reach Nancy Hicks at 473-7250 or nhicks@journalstar.com.


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russ wrote on January 16, 2007 12:09 pm:
" I like this idea better than the gov's. "
John Holmes wrote on January 16, 2007 12:59 pm:
" This sounds like a good idea, but every time it comes up in senate to give the tax credit or not, you know they are all going to vote "no, we need more tax money this year." "
Homeowner wrote on January 16, 2007 1:20 pm:
" YAY!!!! It's about time!! The notion of cutting the estate tax is ridiculous for middle class tax relief is absurd-the tax plan our glorious Gov has suggested is paltry. Homeownership creates wealth-this is real tax relief...FINALLY!!!! "
Yipee wrote on January 16, 2007 1:38 pm:
" Get this bill out of committee and make it a law asap! I like this plan coupled with the Governor's plan. "
Jo wrote on January 16, 2007 1:48 pm:
" Homeownership creates wealth? And that wealth is taxed by the estate tax. It is a never ending cycle. It seems unlikely to me that there is really $250M in any given year to give back when the University system, one of the state's largest employers has been cut to the bone over the past several years. Not to mention it is now expected to take up until 2030 to get I-80 expanded all the way west to Colorado? "
lincoln resident wrote on January 16, 2007 2:29 pm:
" It's about time! Thanks, Senator White! "
Property tax payer wrote on January 16, 2007 3:24 pm:
" It's about time somebody came up with a plan to help property tax owners! This bill doesn't cut into any existing programs, just gives the surplus back to us, the taxpayers who put it there. Thank you Senator White!!! "
Maria wrote on January 16, 2007 3:44 pm:
" Thank you for thinking of us, Senator White. I have wondered how many people have lost their homes because they could no longer pay the high real estate tax. I keep hoping I won't be one of them. I work for a nonprofit organization that depends on contributions for its existence. In the years I've worked there, we have had very few raises and those have been very, very small because our funding is not adequate. In my opinion, homes should not be taxed because it makes it easy for people to lose them when they can no longer pay the taxes, and that should never be. It is difficult enough to pay off a piece of property without having to continue paying on it for the rest of one's life. I wonder how many are homeless because of such taxes. "
ordinary citizen wrote on January 16, 2007 3:51 pm:
" Nebr have a 250 million dollar surplus? Lower my property taxes? Kidden right? Get the de'fib'ulator and shock me some more! "
Mrs. Johnson wrote on January 16, 2007 4:03 pm:
" One of the better ideas to come along in a long time!!! Much better than the govs cuts for the well to do. "
Whoa, Whoa, Whoa wrote on January 16, 2007 4:11 pm:
" There's a $300 million dollar surplus?? I am ignorant, where have I been? So taxpayers have been breaking their backs and "tightening belts" b/c we have too much money???? Who are the math wizards that came up with this one. "
Mad in Lincoln wrote on January 16, 2007 4:29 pm:
" Thanks "assessor" Agena for raising my property "value" to something I could never sell my house for. Now I get to pay 21% ($1025) more in property taxes this year. The system stinks from the valuation (and appeal) process to the way the mill levy is set. More and more people are becoming unable to afford to stay in their homes. Income tax and estate tax are non-issues for most of us. CUT THE PROPERTY TAX!!!! "
Comm UnSense wrote on January 16, 2007 6:08 pm:
" So, if I get this right, we still pay the same property tax, but we get to use $500 toward an income tax credit? Excuse me, but that's not a tax cut, that's only $500 of income that you don't pay a percentage of in tax. In other words, it reduces the total income tax you pay by a maximum of $100. Not such a big deal after you do the math. "
West Dweller wrote on January 16, 2007 8:57 pm:
" Whoa, "Jo" check your geography. I-80 heads to Wyoming out here on my map, not Colorado. This is a better plan, but we need to give Gov. Dave a break... he can't influence property taxes. That's a local government decision. And the high taxes are killing the economies out west (and I mean FAR west for Lincoln people). "
Nancy wrote on January 16, 2007 9:25 pm:
" Actually, I interpreted this as tax credit to be deducted directly from the total tax owed on your 1040N. It would be credit for the whole sum, not a percentage. "
Too little too late wrote on January 16, 2007 9:57 pm:
" The governor is NOT giving you a tax break. He's just hiding the numbers under one shell and you guess which one its under. This article is not too clear. You can be darn sure there will always be bad years, so forget it!!! And he states, "a half-cent reduction in the"5.5%" sales tax." Then please tell me why, after just going thru all kind of past bills, am I being charged 7% sales tax????????!! Not only does the governor know what he's doing, neither does the legislature. The estate tax cut is for the millionaires, we're gonna get that taken care of right away. When you see what other states do for their citizens and work hard to keep from raising property taxes, and have a 5% sales tax and constantly bring in industry, and solid thinking legislators with years of business and financial experience, not 26 yr. olds, you can't help but have no respect for Nebraska's leadership!!! This and the governors "iffy" plans are only sheeps wool being pulled over your eyes. Some of the intelligent leadership should have put their foot down before the assessor made a fool out of the city of Lincoln. A former Nebraskan came back from Calif. this last spring planning to move back. When the person found out what the property taxes were and the increase, the person said "no way, I'll stay in Calif." "
HR wrote on January 16, 2007 10:09 pm:
" Is it a credit or deduction? I'm not hiring you guys to do my taxes! "
D wrote on January 17, 2007 1:41 am:
" Why is it the state legislatures job to patch the bullet holes made by our local government subdivisions? It is my local elected fools who have authority to write checks from our property tax checking account but they can't seem to balance their dreams with our cash flow. Every year their is more state aid to cut property tax and every year that is spent along witht he increased property tax revenue. Yes, I own property in addition to my Nebraska home but you can be certain my investment property is NOT in Nebraska. I use the profit form out of state property ownership to pay the Nebraska property taxes on my home! I look at the employmetn history of my local governemnt elected officials and I see failed business owners and public servants who have had their face in the public hog trough their entire life. They only underestand big government and never look to private industry to resolve any problem. "
ed wrote on January 17, 2007 6:53 am:
" Property taxes need to be eliminated. We all need water, food and shelter. These should be tax free, without tax. No tax on food items. No tax on property on the home you live in. Tax everything else. Tax gas. Increase wheel tax. Tax sales, sales tax should be 15%, I can control my spending. All money goes to a general fund and the State divides it up. Simple system! Get rid of taxes on the basic needs of people. "
Amazed wrote on January 17, 2007 8:23 am:
" Nebraskans wake up. As long as you keep allowing the Schools, local govt., county govt. and so on to spend all of their budget each year or they loose it the next year, you will always have a tax problem. Cut that one thing out of the budget process and you will start building budgets that balance and finally have a lower tax base. We have much waste in govt. and in NEBR. it is even more because we allow each entity to spend all of their budget, as matter of fact, we require them to spend it all or they will not get the same in State Aid the following years. What a STUPID system. But, oh well, nobody listens or cares. Just keep on wasting money. "
Think about it wrote on January 17, 2007 9:27 am:
" Do you honestly think that, given the choice, the legislature will vote to give surplus money back to the taxpayers? This isn't an automatic return of our property tax money and I am not naive enough to believe that politicians seeing 'surplus' money sitting on the table are going to return it to the people it was collected from. They are going to find some way to spend it---that's what they do. And if there is a surplus, every entity or program that gets tax money is going to be there lobbying for their share of the surplus. The idea sounds good but let's be real. We'll never see this money. "
Hmm.. wrote on January 17, 2007 9:48 am:
" Property Tax Relief? How about lowering property taxes permanently? I agree with Amazed, our budget system of 'spend it or lose it' for state programs is a huge problem. Save money during the good years so that you have an emergency fund for the bad, and we can make property tax 'relief' permanent. "
Dave wrote on January 17, 2007 10:13 am:
" Move to Iowa. We did, much cheaper. "
Cathy wrote on February 7, 2007 1:53 pm:
" I appreciate White's trying but lowering the property taxes permanently is needed. Nebraska is one of the highest states for property taxes -other states manage to run themselves without unethically high taxes. I came here from a state that gives everyone a 25,000 exemption on property taxes and has a lower property tax rate. I have begun checking other states South Carolina charges about 1/3 the property tax as Nebraska. The only way things will change is if enough people care enough to continually write to our local government. Moving to Iowa is an option - maybe if everyone in NE moved to Iowa Nebraska Government would finally wake up. "
Cathy wrote on February 7, 2007 2:26 pm:
" The best place to initiate change is by writing to your government the follow link provides their email addresses: http://nebraskalegislature.gov/web/public/contact/senators Blogging here is fun but let's let the people who can effect change hear what we have to say. "

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