Nebraska Farm Bureau Urges Property Tax Reform

The Ag Group Continues To Push For Property Tax Reform In Nebraska

The Nebraska Farm Bureau is urging state lawmakers to make

property tax reform a top priority in the 2026 legislative session with an

emphasis on taking steps to slow the growth in property tax collections. The

message was delivered during a January 22 news conference held at the State

Capitol during a meeting of the organization’s State Board of Directors.

“Property taxes continue to be a top concern for Nebraskans. It’s critical

that the Legislature act this session to address our state’s out of control

property tax situation,” said Mark McHargue, Nebraska Farm Bureau President.

New data released by the Nebraska Department of Revenue’s Property Assessment

Division shows that statewide collection of property taxes increased by nearly

$286 million in 2025, a more than five percent increase. The hike follows

largely flat statewide property tax collections in 2024, after the state took

over funding for a significant portion of Nebraska’s community colleges once

supported by property taxes.

“In one years’ time, the growth in statewide property taxes has effectively

wiped out the progress that was made with the Legislature’s action to remove

community colleges from the property tax rolls. It’s clear that we have to

address the property tax problem at its roots, which means legislative action

to slow the growth of property taxes at the local level,” said McHargue.

According to McHargue, Nebraskans can simply no longer afford runaway property

taxes.

“When we think about tax policy and government spending, we can’t ignore

Nebraskans’ ability to pay. To that point, Nebraskans’ median household income

doubled from 2000 to 2024. During that same period, property taxes quadrupled.

Nebraskans’ pocketbooks cannot keep up with the growth in property tax

collections by local governments. We must find a way to slow collections

down,” said McHargue. “That means tightening caps on property tax asking and

increasing the thresholds by which local governments are allowed to exceed

property tax asking limitations.”

McHargue indicated that bills have been introduced on property taxes that

would start down the path of slowing property tax collections from which the

body could work.

“We appreciate the work the Legislature has done to provide property tax

relief to hardworking Nebraskans through credits and other measures, but it’s

time for the Legislature to step in and use its authorities to slow growth in

local collections. Taking steps in that direction would be a “win” for

taxpayers and the Legislature this session,” said McHargue.