LINCOLN- Proponents of a bill that tweaks how county assessors value certain affordable housing projects say it addresses problems that resulted in skyrocketing values for some Lancaster County properties last year. But the bill (LB1217) doesn’t appear to directly address constitutional issues raised in an appeal now before the Nebraska Supreme Court, though that issue could be moot.

Earlier this month, the Nebraska attorney general’s office filed a brief in the case, arguing that the existing law is constitutional, and it appears, at least at this point, that the high court doesn’t plan to hear the constitutional issues. The current approach alarmed affordable housing advocates and others who say the lack of affordable housing makes such housing a priority.

Lancaster County Commissioner Sean Flowerday, who works for Lincoln Sen. Eliot Bostar and was part of a group looking for a legislative fix, said the bill adds a provision requiring assessors to use a three-year rolling average of income and expenses. “I believe this will solve the problem of zero values, and that’s really the crux of the issue,” Flowerday said. “That’s the thing no one can live with.”

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