LINCOLN- Judging from a handful of people who attended a town hall meeting, Gov. Jim Pillen might have some popular support for raising sales taxes to lower property taxes. Pillen held a trio of town halls Monday in northeast Nebraska, culminating with more than a hour-long discussion inside a cavernous metal-working business near Fremont, All-Metals Market Inc.

The sessions were part of a series of recent town halls scheduled by the governor over the past few weeks to discuss his legislative priorities, which are topped by an ambitious plan to deliver an additional $1 billion in property tax relief this legislative session. His proposal, which is still taking shape, has been criticized by both ends of the political spectrum because its key mechanism is raising the state’s sale tax by 1 cent, from 5.5 cents to 6.5 cents.

He told those attending the town hall meeting that a 1-cent increase in sales taxes would allow a $500 million shift, which means another half-billion dollars in new revenue is needed. A number of town hall attendees agreed with the plan or portions of the plan. “This is a living, breathing piece of legislation, but we have to solve it this year,” he said.

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