Governor Pillen and state senators came together on Tuesday morning to announce the introduction of the governor’s education priority bills. The new reform seeks to equalize state funding throughout Nebraska’s 244 school districts and to lower property taxes.
“Property taxes have gotten so out of whack in Nebraska that you don’t even need to own property to be affected,” said Pillen.
The new bills address 1990’s Tax Equity and Education Opportunities Support Act, or “TEEOSA,” which was a dramatic shift in school funding that promised to lower property taxes in exchange for higher income and sales taxes. In a conversation with KLIN News in December, then-Governor-Elect Pillen said numerous changes to the legislation throughout the years led TEEOSA to not fulfill its promise and that up to 158 school districts in Nebraska receive no funding at all.
Speaking at the press conference, Nebraska senator Rita Sanders said the state would invest $113 million in foundational aid and $157 million in special educational support. “The bills introduced today are the first of many steps in reforming TEEOSA,” said Sanders.