LINCOLN — When a new Nebraska Legislature convenes for its 2027 session, lawmakers will have the authority to accept or reject Gov. Jim Pillen’s plan to cut all state agencies’ budgets by a minimum of 5%. Pillen announced the spending cuts in a July memo. Though the memo announced the reductions would begin immediately, there […]

Records obtained Friday by Nebraska Public Media News show state agencies are using a number of strategies – ranging from cutting positions to potentially having employees sleep in cars rather than in hotel rooms – in response to Gov. Jim Pillen’s memo that said his State Budget Division would be withholding at least 5% of […]

LINCOLN — Nebraska’s tax receipts for July fell less than 1% below economic forecasts, according to the state Department of Revenue, as data shows a steadily lessening impact of higher-than-expected tax refunds. The Department of Revenue’s report on July’s tax receipts showed a net loss of 0.1% compared to what Nebraska’s Economic Forecasting Advisory Board […]

LINCOLN — The effects of Gov. Jim Pillen’s 5% spending reduction across all state agencies aren’t likely to hit Nebraska’s community colleges until mid-2027. Michael Baumgartner, executive director of the Nebraska Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education, said the 5% cut won’t impact the state’s Community College Future Fund — the largest share of state aid […]

LINCOLN — A proposed University of Nebraska operating budget request for the 2027-29 budget cycle would increase taxpayer dollars to NU by $91 million compared with NU’s current annual budget. The proposal before the NU Board of Regents this Thursday calls for an additional 4.25% in state appropriations each budget year. NU’s current annual appropriation is […]

LINCOLN — Nebraska lawmakers will likely have to contend with two separate budget deficits when they reconvene for the 2027 legislative session, with the combined shortfall currently set over $1 billion. Legislative Fiscal Analyst Keisha Patent confirmed the situation at a Tax Rate Review Committee meeting on Wednesday. There, she provided lawmakers with a new […]