Daily Minute: Special session nears; fewer protest valuations; farmland values start to slow

Special session nears

This month's special session, expected to begin July 25, comes months after the governor's scaled-back plan to reduce Nebraskans' property taxes failed to clear the final hurdle in the Legislature in April, sinking the legislation the first-term governor championed and dealing Gov. Jim Pillen the biggest loss of his political career.

Pillen’s decision to use his office's power to recall lawmakers for a special session focused on his administration's own agenda is out-of-step with how the state's recent governors have approached special sessions.

When the Legislature reconvenes this month — assuming Pillen does formally recall lawmakers to Lincoln, which hasn't yet happened — it will mark the fifth special legislative session in Nebraska in the last 20 years and the eighth since the turn of the century.

Every other special session called in Nebraska since 2000, though, has been in response to budding crises, looming deadlines or dire financial straits requiring immediate budget cuts.

Fewer protest valuations

More than 1,200 Lancaster County property owners protested the values assessed on their homes or offices — substantially fewer than last year, when a historic spike in values led to sticker shock on many property tax bills.

As of Tuesday, the Lancaster County assessor’s office had received 1,227 formal protests, the majority for residential property. The deadline to file formal protests was Monday, but those postmarked on Monday are still trickling in.

Last year, the county heard about 4,500 protests — the most since 2012, prompted in part by a total revaluation of property that resulted in an average increase in assessed value of a historic 23%.

Farmland values starting to slow

And, a number of sources show that Nebraska farmland values are starting to slow down.

The final report from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s 2023-2024 Farm Real Estate Market Survey, released last week, showed that ag land values in the state grew 5% this year, to a record average of $4,015 per acre for the 12-month period ending Feb. 1.

That was the fifth-straight yearly increase, but it was much lower than it has been in past years.

That’s it for Monday, July 8th. Stay in the know with Lincoln’s longest-standing news source at JournalStar.com and we’ll see you back here tomorrow.