All Roll Calls
Yes: 580 • No: 150
NebraskaLB650109th Legislature 1st and 2nd SessionslegislatureWALLET
Adopt the Community Development Assistance Act and change provisions relating to land banks, property tax exemptions, real property sold for delinquent taxes, sales tax provisions, and certain tax credits
Sponsored By: R. Brad von Gillern
Signed by Governor
Revenue Committee
Personalized for You
How does this bill affect your finances?
Personalize government policy and PRIA will tell you what this bill means for your household, plus every other piece of legislation we track. PRIA reads each provision against your financial profile to show you exactly what matters to your wallet.
Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
27 provisions identified: 13 benefits, 8 costs, 6 mixed.
School property tax credits grow
Nebraska funds big yearly credits that lower school district taxes on your property tax bill. Minimum statewide relief is $750 million for 2024; $780 million for 2025; $808 million for 2026; $838 million for 2027; $870 million for 2028; and $902 million for 2029. From 2030 on, the minimum rises 3% each year. The state transfers $750 million in 2024–25 into the relief fund and can move year‑end General Fund surpluses into this fund based on set formulas.
Up to $1,000 for home water
You can claim a refundable credit equal to 50% of the cost to install a reverse‑osmosis system, up to $1,000. Only one taxpayer per home can claim it. You must submit a drinking‑water test and system cost documents. The Department approves in the order received until the annual cap is met. Caps are $250,000 for FY2024‑25 and FY2025‑26, $500,000 for FY2026‑27 and FY2027‑28, and $1,000,000 each year after.
2025 credit for food donations
For 2025, grocery retailers, restaurants, and farm producers can claim a Nebraska credit equal to 50% of qualifying food donations, up to $2,500. Credits are nonrefundable, carry forward three years, and are split proportionally if requests exceed the $500,000 program cap. You must add back any federal charitable deduction for the same donation. Employers who hire people not authorized to work in the U.S. cannot claim this credit.
Business credit for community donations
Nebraska gives businesses a tax credit equal to 40% of cash or in‑kind gifts to state‑certified community betterment programs. Unused credit carries forward for five years. The state caps total certified credits at $350,000 each fiscal year, and the Department of Economic Development must certify programs. Locally, the city or county chief reviews proposals in 45 days (or they are deemed approved), and the state must decide in 45 days. Corporations can also claim this credit against their Nebraska taxes.
Shortline railroad maintenance credit
Starting in 2025, eligible shortline rail owners or lessees get a nonrefundable Nebraska credit equal to 50% of qualified maintenance costs. Each taxpayer’s credit is capped at $1,500 times the miles of track they own or lease in Nebraska. The program’s total credits are capped at $500,000 per fiscal year.
More industries can use community credits
Insurance companies can use Community Development Assistance Act credits against Nebraska premium tax. Financial institutions can use those credits against the Nebraska franchise tax. This broadens who can reduce tax by funding certified community development programs.
Lower film tax credit caps
Cast and Crew Nebraska credits are limited to $500,000 per fiscal year. Any single film or TV production can claim no more than $500,000 in a year. The limits apply to full‑length films, TV movies, and qualifying TV or streaming series.
Smaller sales and use tax allowance
Sellers and designated collectors may now keep only 2.5% of the first $3,000 of sales or use tax they remit each month. This replaces the old 3% of the first $5,000 rule. Combined filers compute by location. For use tax, you forfeit the deduction if you violate a Tax Commissioner rule.
Program credit approvals paused 2026–2029
The director may approve up to $3 million in credits for 2022–2023 and up to $6 million for 2024–2025. No program certifications are approved for 2026–2029. Starting in 2030, approvals up to $6 million per year resume. Applications are handled in the order received, with a wait list after annual limits.
School property tax credit on bills
The state funds a school property tax credit that shows up on your bill. Each county’s share equals its prior‑year school taxes divided by the statewide total. The Property Tax Administrator certifies amounts by September 15 each year, and counties get two equal payments by January 31 and April 1. Your parcel’s credit is pro rata based on your parcel’s prior‑year school taxes compared to the county total. Homestead recipients get credit only up to any tax left after the exemption; counties must return unused amounts by July 1. Money in the School District Property Tax Relief Credit Fund pays these county disbursements, and any transfers into the fund count toward that year’s minimum relief.
Stronger tax-sale notice and rights
Buyers of tax-sale certificates must try to serve owners in person or at home; only then can they use certified mail. For vacant and abandoned property, buyers must make three failed in‑person attempts before using mail. Pre‑deed notices must warn that later taxes may have been paid and that interest and fees may have accrued. If owners cannot be found in the state, notices must go to the address used for the property tax bill. If a treasurer or designee wrongfully sells property, it is a Class I misdemeanor. After a tax deed, any surplus to the prior owner equals the assessed value at application minus the redemption amount, recorded encumbrances, and a $500 administrative fee (or reasonable attorney fees if there was a judicial foreclosure).
Resident credit for community giving
Nebraska residents can claim a nonrefundable state income tax credit for donations to programs certified under the state’s economic and community development laws. If you own a share of a pass‑through business, you report your share of the credit the same way you report your share of income.
Less tax on tower and broadcast leases
Leases or uses of towers, structures, and related gear are excluded from gross receipts when mainly used for internet access, farm GPS, or FCC‑licensed radio/TV broadcasting. The exclusion now also covers antennas and studio transmitter link systems. A studio transmitter link system is the radio gear that moves content from a studio to a transmitter and antenna.
2025 program credits capped, then end
For calendar year 2025, the total available credits are capped at $900,000, with $300,000 per congressional district. In districts 1 and 3, a single program or project is limited to $150,000. The law stops allowing these credits in 2026 and later. Unused credits allowed in 2025 can still be carried forward under existing rules.
Lower annual caps on credits
The Department of Revenue can approve only $1,000,000 in certain tax credits each fiscal year. The Relocation Incentive program is also limited to $1,000,000 per year. If requests exceed these limits, the Department splits credits proportionally among applicants.
Lower caps for rural development credits
The state sets yearly caps on total expected credits for Rural Development Act projects. For subsection (1): $1,000,000 for 2016–2022; $2,000,000 for 2023–2025; $1,000,000 for 2026 and later. For subsection (2): $500,000 (2016); $750,000 (2017–2018); $1,000,000 (2019–2021); $10,000,000 (2022–2024); $7,500,000 (2025); $1,000,000 (2026+). The Tax Commissioner must stop approving more once a year’s cap is reached.
No new Urban Redevelopment incentives
The state stops accepting new applications for incentives under the Urban Redevelopment Act as of the section’s operative date. Existing approved agreements continue under current rules.
Faster deeds for vacant properties
For property found vacant and abandoned, a buyer (or land bank) can apply for a tax deed within nine months after two years from sale; all others stay on the three‑year timeline. A land bank must start foreclosure within nine months after two years for vacant and abandoned parcels; others follow three years. A buyer can use the deed path only if 110% of the assessed value minus the redemption amount is $25,000 or less; otherwise, they must foreclose. A land bank may deem property vacant and abandoned two years after sale if it meets more than two listed conditions, or if the city has registered it as such, and must file an affidavit. To get a deed, buyers must submit the certificate, fee, required notices, title work, and affidavits, including any vacancy affidavit.
Rural development farm credit changes
Livestock projects need at least $10,000 of investment for applications filed in 2024–2025, but $50,000 before 2024 and again for filings in 2026 or later. The refundable livestock credit equals 10% of investment, capped at $500,000 per application for filings from April 20, 2022 through 2025, and $150,000 per application for filings in 2026 or later. No new Rural Development applications are allowed after December 31, 2027. If your application is denied only because the yearly cap was already reached, you get $400 back from the application fee.
Tax breaks clarified for disabled veterans
Motor vehicles and mobile homes can be tax‑exempt if owned and used or occupied by a disabled or blind veteran with a VA‑recognized service‑connected condition. The veteran must have an honorable discharge (mobile homes also allow general under honorable conditions). Motor‑vehicle exemptions require approval under section 60‑3,189. The law uses the federal definition of “disabled veteran” in 5 U.S.C. 2108 as of January 1, 2025.
Stronger privacy for sales tax data
Certified tax service providers must run systems that do not keep consumers’ personal data, except when needed to process tax‑exempt purchases. They must publish a privacy policy, let people see and correct any data they keep, stop keeping data when no longer needed, and use safeguards. The Attorney General can enforce these privacy rules.
Clearer rules for county tax sales
County treasurers must publish a list with owner name, parcel number, and any street address, and may hold sales at the office or another named place. Sales start on the noticed day and continue day to day, except Sundays and holidays, until taxes and charges are covered. Treasurers can delegate many auction tasks to a designee but must attend in person or by designee, or face a $50–$300 fine. Tax‑sale certificates may be delivered by hand, mail, or electronically.
Contractors’ tax‑free buys limited to nonprofits
Starting July 1, 2026, a contractor can buy building materials tax‑free only when the client is a nonprofit. The client must appoint the contractor in writing before items are annexed to real estate. Contractors who paid tax without prior authorization can still seek refunds when the client is a nonprofit.
Community colleges dropped from tax hearings
For joint public hearings on property tax request increases, “political subdivision” now means counties, cities, or school districts. Community colleges no longer take part in these joint hearings when asking for more than allowable growth.
New fees and notices for tax sales
If a tax‑sale certificate is issued on your property, you must pay a one‑time $150 administrative fee. Buyers pay a $25 certificate issuance fee; if the county assigns a county‑held certificate later, the buyer pays $25 then. The advertising cost per property drops from $25 to $20, the $2 redemption entry fee is removed, and the $1 per notice‑service fee is removed. The newspaper publication cap is $20 per property. Treasurers must mail redemption notices to certificate holders with an address on file (or use agreed electronic notice) and must send county tax‑sale lists to the state to post online.
When this law takes effect
Many sections start on January 1, 2026. Two sections start three months after the Legislature adjourns. The law declares an emergency, so the act takes effect when passed and approved. It also repeals a long list of older statutes.
Cities can review local taxes
Cities with a local sales tax can request sellers’ confidential returns for locations in the city. The city must give 10 business days’ notice, name one certified reviewer, and review records at the state Department unless a secure electronic setup exists. The reviewer can alert the Auditor of Public Accounts about suspected problems. State auditors may also inspect confidential returns to audit the Revenue Department, but only on Department premises. City reviewers face a Class I misdemeanor for improper disclosure, and the state is not liable for a city’s wrongful disclosure.
Sponsors & Cosponsors
Sponsor
R. Brad von Gillern
Senate
Cosponsors
There are no cosponsors for this bill.
Roll Call Votes
legislature vote • 4/30/2025
Final Reading
Yes: 40 • No: 7
legislature vote • 4/24/2025
Vote
Yes: 28 • No: 0 • Other: 21
legislature vote • 4/24/2025
Vote
Yes: 32 • No: 0 • Other: 17
legislature vote • 4/24/2025
Vote
Yes: 16 • No: 25 • Other: 8
legislature vote • 4/24/2025
Vote
Yes: 15 • No: 32 • Other: 2
legislature vote • 4/24/2025
Vote
Yes: 30 • No: 10 • Other: 9
legislature vote • 4/24/2025
Vote
Yes: 34 • No: 5 • Other: 10
legislature vote • 4/11/2025
Vote
Yes: 38 • No: 1 • Other: 10
legislature vote • 4/11/2025
Vote
Yes: 38 • No: 0 • Other: 11
legislature vote • 4/11/2025
Vote
Yes: 36 • No: 2 • Other: 11
legislature vote • 4/11/2025
Vote
Yes: 38 • No: 0 • Other: 11
legislature vote • Unknown
Vote
Yes: 30 • No: 10 • Other: 9
legislature vote • Unknown
Vote
Yes: 16 • No: 25 • Other: 8
legislature vote • Unknown
Vote
Yes: 38 • No: 1 • Other: 10
legislature vote • Unknown
Vote
Yes: 38 • No: 0 • Other: 11
legislature vote • Unknown
Vote
Yes: 38 • No: 0 • Other: 11
legislature vote • Unknown
Vote
Yes: 28 • No: 0 • Other: 21
legislature vote • Unknown
Vote
Yes: 32 • No: 0 • Other: 17
legislature vote • Unknown
Vote
Yes: 15 • No: 32 • Other: 2
Actions Timeline
Provisions/portions of LB547 amended into LB650 by AM923
6/6/2025legislatureProvisions/portions of LB495 amended into LB650 by AM923
6/6/2025legislatureProvisions/portions of LB494 amended into LB650 by AM923
6/6/2025legislatureProvisions/portions of LB458 amended into LB650 by AM923
6/6/2025legislatureProvisions/portions of LB270 amended into LB650 by AM923
6/6/2025legislatureApproved by Governor on May 6, 2025
5/6/2025legislaturePresented to Governor on April 30, 2025
4/30/2025legislaturePresident/Speaker signed
4/30/2025legislaturePassed on Final Reading with Emergency Clause 40-7*-2
4/30/2025legislatureDispensing of reading at large approved
4/30/2025legislaturePlaced on Final Reading
4/28/2025legislatureAdvanced to Enrollment and Review for Engrossment
4/24/2025legislatureCavanaugh, J. FA131 lost
4/24/2025legislatureCavanaugh, J. FA131 filed
4/24/2025legislatureMcKinney AM1155 lost
4/24/2025legislatureMcKinney AM1155 filed
4/24/2025legislatureHallstrom AM1123 withdrawn
4/24/2025legislatureHallstrom AM1066 adopted
4/24/2025legislatureHallstrom AM1089 withdrawn
4/24/2025legislaturevon Gillern AM1132 adopted
4/24/2025legislaturevon Gillern AM1118 adopted
4/24/2025legislatureEnrollment and Review ER45 adopted
4/24/2025legislatureHallstrom AM1123 filed
4/23/2025legislatureHallstrom AM1066 filed
4/23/2025legislatureHallstrom AM1089 filed
4/23/2025legislature
Bill Text
Introduced
1/22/2025
Enrolled / Slip Law
Final / Enacted
Related Bills
LB468, Change provisions relating to inheritance taxes, change certain fee and tax provisions, and eliminate a sales tax exemption relating to data centers
LB677, Change provisions of the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Regulation Act and provide for regulation of medical cannabis
LB13, Require the Department of Health and Human Services to file a state plan amendment relating to child care
LB170, Eliminate the sales tax exemptions for candy and soft drinks
LB646, Provide an exemption from brand inspections and change fees under the Livestock Brand Act
LB714, Change provisions relating to motor vehicle taxes and fees