Governor Jim Pillen thanked God for a “second shot” in life during the opening remarks of his State of the State address made before lawmakers on Wednesday morning.
“I am pleased to report that the state of our state is extraordinarily strong,” Pillen said, after recounting his late-December horseback-riding accident, which left the Governor with minor lacerations to his spleen and kidney, seven broken ribs, a partially collapsed lung resulting from the rib damage, and a minor fracture in one of his vertebrae. He was discharged from the hospital before the new year.
“For the many Nebraskans whose livelihood depends on their stewardship of powerful animals, respect for that power is no mystery. I dropped my guard, and I was humbled by a reminder of that power. I am here before you today only by God’s grace,” he described, later quipping “Okay, no more horsing around.”
Pillen touted the Cornhusker state’s low unemployment rate, which routinely ranks among the lowest. He also pointed to modest population growth, topping 2 million for the first time in state history as of July of 2024.
“The engines of our economy are powering that growth—from our agricultural backbone to our powerhouse financial services and manufacturing sectors,” he said, then gesturing towards austerity measures as a positive, and Republicans taking the White House and a slim majority in Congress as a reason for hope.
“But even with these strengths, this legislative session affords us tremendous opportunities to take further steps forward,” Pillen said, shifting towards his legislative wishes for lawmakers in 2025.
Pillen promised further cuts to spending and “making Nebraska a low-tax state.”
“Despite dire warnings of budget shortfalls, I have presented a budget that shrinks state spending by half a percent over the next biennium. In fact, if you set aside increased and unreimbursed Medicaid spending required by the federal government, State spending in this budget is reduced by 2.3 percent,” he continued.
Chris Potter, Chief of the Kennard Volunteer Fire Department. (Courtesy: Office of Governor Jim Pillen)
Additionally, Pillen said he would prioritize reform to the state’s school funding, estate tax, and property tax systems, respectively — resurging priorities for the Governor heading into his third-year.
Another legislative priority resurging from year’s past, Pillen platformed winner-take-all, or the changing of Nebraska’s electoral college vote system away from the congressional district method which Nebraska has followed since the ’90s.
“Now more than ever, it is vital that our state speaks with a unified voice on the national stage. For three decades, under our current allocation of electoral college votes by congressional district, we have divided our voice and diminished our impact in presidential elections,” he said. “Now is the time to fix it, and I thank Senator Lippincott for his leadership in giving it the priority it deserves… I call on this body to end this thirty year experiment and pass winner take all this legislative session.”
After honoring Chris Potter, the chief of the Kennard Volunteer Fire Department from Washington County, whose fire and EMS teams responded moments after a deadly tornado tore through it, Pillen concluded his remarks.
“Many important issues will consume our focus throughout this legislative session. I pledge to you that we will be your partner through it all. Thank you for your service to our state, and thank you to your families. God bless you and God bless the State of Nebraska.”