LINCOLN- On Friday, it was announced that, despite worries, Nebraska's tax revenues, following a light revenue month, have slightly surpassed the Nebraska Economic Forecasting Advisory Board's projections, adding nearly $3 million to the state's rainy day fund. General fund receipts for the 2022-23 fiscal year came out to a whopping $6.37 billion, which sits just within 0.05% of the projections released earlier this year.

Sen. Lou Ann Linehan, chair of the Legislature's Revenue Committee, said getting a projection that close is "like getting a 37 on the ACT." Regarding the forecasters, Linehan continued, "To be that close is amazing. They had to kind of swim against the waves because they were kind of told and guided in a different direction." The final tally of receipts was a rebound from recent economic trends in the state that moved downwards toward the end of the 2023 legislative session. The positive change was seemingly caused by receipts collected in June, which jumped 9% from the previous month.

Gov. Jim Pillen also celebrated the news, saying that the state would "continue to work with state agencies to constrain spending" in order to make room for the tax relief passed this year in the Legislature. However, reactions to the news weren't all cheery. Rebecca Firestone, executive director of OpenSky Policy Institute, acknowledged that Nebraska's excellent tax revenues will provide a cushion for a time, but warned against cutting income tax and state spending, believing it could put the state's economy in a pinch. "Lawmakers removed some of the cushion available for a potential economic downturn," said Firestone of the recently-passed income tax cuts.

For the full article click HERE