LINCOLN- Nebraska lawmakers advanced a bill this week that would continue an income tax credit program at a level high enough to offset about a quarter of school property taxes.

LB723 cleared first-round consideration on a 36-0 vote, but only after an amendment was added to keep the program from exploding in cost. The measure must clear two more rounds of debate to pass.

Sen. Lou Ann Linehan of Elkhorn, the Revenue Committee chairwoman, backed the amendment and the bill, which make changes to a program that allows property owners to claim refundable income tax credits equal to a portion of what they paid in school property taxes.

"It protects us against it getting a lot more and yet prevents us from going backward," she said.

As amended, LB723 would fix the size of the program at $548 million for the current year and at $560.7 million for 2023, then allow it to grow as a new property is added to the tax rolls.

Sen. Tom Briese of Albion, who introduced the measure, said that without LB723, the program would shrink by about $200 million in 2025, which he said would amount to a property tax increase.

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