Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
They are finished now or signe die, as they say,
and I assume Latin. When they adjourned. A legislative session
wrapped it up yesterday special session on property taxes and
the main bill LB for a thirty four passed forty
to three. The governor signed it as a shadow of
(00:22):
what he had hoped for when he called the special session.
The prime mover in the legislature on this legislation was
lou aynelenaan senator from Elkhorn and the chairman of the
Revenue Committee, who joins us for a few minutes this morning. Hey,
lo Ane, welcome back.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
Good morning, Gary and Jim. So happy to be here.
Speaker 1 (00:40):
So big disappointment, I know. The Governor in his message
yesterday tried to put the best face on it he could,
but he was pretty upfront too. He said, look, there's
a lot more to do, a lot more to do,
and there are people obstructing this, but we're going to
keep trying. Next time out, can you give us a
thumbnail of what the actually does so.
Speaker 3 (01:02):
It's actually there are some very good things. It front
loads the eleven h seven. So in the past you
had to pay your taxes and then wait to do
your income taxes and then get a refund or credit,
and a lot of people aren't doing They're not filing
for the credit. I think because there's misunderstanding that you
have to owe income taxes to get the credit. And
(01:22):
about I think what the governor said yesterday, sixty five
percent of the people in Omaha Public School District have
not filed for the credit. So that tells me a
lot of people are going to get over thirty percent
in relief that they haven't been seen.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
So that's good news.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
Other good news is we did get a cap on
city and county spending for other things other than public safety.
I think that will help do. I think that cures
all evils know. I also think there was an effort
during the session to get rid of the pink postcard,
which is very bad idea. That postcard is very effective
when you read stories about people's budget the tax people
(02:00):
who levy taxes always want to avoid that pink postcard.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
So I think that's helpful.
Speaker 1 (02:04):
Okay, the pink post guard. Define that for me.
Speaker 3 (02:06):
It is if a taxing entity raises your taxes tax taking,
I mean you check you right or your escual account.
If they raise that over two and a half percent.
Then they have to tell the people they're doing it.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
So what do you think this will do for levees?
Gene Stothard has crowed about dropping the brass or Omaha's
city portion of your property tax levee, and she has
done that. It has not mattered because people's property taxes
go through the roof. So it's an easy political name,
but it doesn't do anything for you. What do you
think this will do to school districts and to cities
(02:45):
who now have access to the levees to try and
make up for the loss in property tax revenue.
Speaker 2 (02:49):
Well, I think I'm hopeful that they're listening.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
After my eight years in state legislature, it doesn't seem
like they are, or not the vast majority of him are.
I just think people have to be more a where
when people talk about levies, you should not take that
as an answer. Ask them if they raised your taxes
or not. Is your check that you write this year
going to be bigger than the check you wrote last year?
Speaker 2 (03:12):
That's the question. And if it is, they raised your taxes.
Speaker 4 (03:16):
Yeah, and that's what's happened. I mean, you saw the
article the editor of from Jim vocal in the World
era on Sunday that was that was probably as bare
and simple an illustration of the problem as we have seen.
And yet it didn't seem to matter because we have
some members of the Camera that hate Jim Pillin so
much that they'd rather hate him than serve their constituents.
(03:37):
And you know who you are, and so do your constituents.
But what about the big streetcar project and what about
TIFF financing? What's this going to do for that?
Speaker 2 (03:48):
Ah?
Speaker 3 (03:51):
I uh, I think and I've been clear at this
from the very beginning. I put in two bills to
try and stop it. I think building is strict street
car with TIFF is a bad idea. You're building a
street car with property taxes. And I know that others,
including the mayor, will say that's not true. We're not
using taxes, but TIFF. The first word is tax and
(04:12):
creditment financing.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
It's tax dollars, State Center of Lion, lenehem with us
and the financials are based on rising property values, dramatically rising.
Address what Mayor Stouthor has said. And I had a
offer or not off the record, but a private conversation
with her, and she's seem very sincere about zero cap
(04:34):
zero potentially zero percent cap trash is the City of
Omaha's credit rating. You do you talk to her about that?
Speaker 3 (04:42):
I yes, we had several conversations and several taxes. At
one point I just kind of stopped. It's only zero
if we have deflation, and if we have deflation, people's
taxes shouldn't go up. You can't just talk about what
your needs are. You have to talk about the taxpayer's
needs when you raise when you raise taxes during the
(05:02):
deflationary period' that's double hard.
Speaker 1 (05:06):
Or zero percent in place right.
Speaker 3 (05:07):
Zero, So you can't and we actually increase the inflation.
We went from CPI to what they call SLICE, which
is city and state's cost of increasing. I just don't
buy they can't live with it. Everybody has to live
within a budget. Everybody that pays taxes does, and it's
time to tax takers live within their budgets too. That
(05:29):
matches the ability of the taxpayer to pay.
Speaker 4 (05:31):
Now you talked about slice. This is important because some
people think, well, the rate of inflation, If the rate
of inflation is two point five percent, that's how much
they should be able to raise my taxes. Slice is
what government pays for things, and that's typically higher. How
much higher?
Speaker 3 (05:45):
It's usually about one percent higher year. Over the last
twenty years it has been one percent higher.
Speaker 4 (05:49):
And what's that right now?
Speaker 2 (05:50):
Any idea I do the number five? Something comes to
my mind, but I'm not sure. So there you go.
Speaker 4 (05:55):
So they're going to get a chance to raise your
taxes by five percent. And if you can't live with
a five percent increase on top of everything else you have,
you're not managing your money very well. You're not prioritizing
city services and the people.
Speaker 3 (06:08):
The unions that the city has to deal with. And
I believe in unions they have their purpose. But the
unions know how much money you have, they know how
much valuations went up, they know how much taxes you
can take in. So when they walk into the bargaining room,
if you're not tough, they're going to ask for as much.
That's their job. Their job is to get as much
for their members as they possibly can't. Administration's job is
(06:28):
to hold back.
Speaker 1 (06:30):
The other thing that everybody needs to remember is that
this legislation I'll be thirty four, the CAPS does not
touch schools. No, this massive lobby that the educators have
they're going to be down there next session land working
on all of these new senators and everything that you
have any level of optimism that education institutions can be
(06:53):
included in this cap, that the school districts can.
Speaker 3 (06:57):
I think the biggest idea that govern and pill And
had and I agree with him wholeheartedly, is we need
to shift the funding of K twelve public schools onto
the state and off the taxpayers back. It's it's ridiculous
we have it. Well, just property taxes period, they come,
They've been around since King George. They're not a good
(07:19):
way to measure people's ability to pay. Just think you
have somebody, young couple by two hundred and fifty thousand
dollars house. Maybe they got a thirty thousand down dollar
down payment, so their net assets worth thirty thousand dollars.
But we're taxing him as if they have two hundred
and fifty thousand dollars in assets. It's just wrong and
we shouldn't tax people on the house. We need to
move away from property taxes and more onto sales.
Speaker 4 (07:41):
Tax I do have one more question for I know
around behind, but we have blue ann here, Okay, we
have elections coming up Yes. District three Felix Angermann Yes, no, Yes,
Okay to replace Carol Blood, she's a liberal. District thirty
nine yours Yes, Tony Serrentino has a problem. How big
a problem? The only one by two hundred and fift
one votes against the liberal Alison Himes who gave you
(08:02):
a run.
Speaker 3 (08:02):
Alls he has to do in thirty nine is till Eerybody.
He's the only Republican and he'll be just fine.
Speaker 4 (08:06):
Gilb District five, Gilbert Ayala, who's a real tax hawk,
beat Margot Horrez, who's a liberal Democrat, by eighteen votes.
Speaker 2 (08:13):
What about that one? I think he can win.
Speaker 4 (08:15):
Okay District nineteen Jean Regal robbed over as a Pete
Ricketts guy, Pete robbed over hurt Jim Pinnan in this race,
she leads him by two hundred votes. Can she hang on?
Speaker 2 (08:26):
I need not know.
Speaker 4 (08:28):
And then District one, Julie Slama, who lost her mind
in this legislative session, is not running for reelection. Is
Table Rock businessman Dennis Shard, who really dominated in that primary?
A tax guy or do you know?
Speaker 3 (08:40):
I don't really know him. My brother knows him. Actually,
my brother has neighbors on both sides, the two of
them in that race, so he's trying to stay out
of it.
Speaker 2 (08:49):
I don't know, Dennis, I like his opponent.
Speaker 1 (08:51):
Thanks free efforts in this session, Lauren. Really we appreciate it.
And I know you're done now because you're term landed out,
but don't leave. Appreciate you very much, Thank you, thank you,
They are finished now or signe die, as they say,
and I assume Latin. When they adjourned. A legislative session
wrapped it up yesterday special session on property taxes and
the main bill LB for a thirty four passed forty
to three. The governor signed it as a shadow of
(00:22):
what he had hoped for when he called the special session.
The prime mover in the legislature on this legislation was
lou aynelenaan senator from Elkhorn and the chairman of the
Revenue Committee, who joins us for a few minutes this morning. Hey,
lo Ane, welcome back.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
Good morning, Gary and Jim. So happy to be here.
Speaker 1 (00:40):
So big disappointment, I know. The Governor in his message
yesterday tried to put the best face on it he could,
but he was pretty upfront too. He said, look, there's
a lot more to do, a lot more to do,
and there are people obstructing this, but we're going to
keep trying. Next time out, can you give us a
thumbnail of what the actually does so.
Speaker 3 (01:02):
It's actually there are some very good things. It front
loads the eleven h seven. So in the past you
had to pay your taxes and then wait to do
your income taxes and then get a refund or credit,
and a lot of people aren't doing They're not filing
for the credit. I think because there's misunderstanding that you
have to owe income taxes to get the credit. And
(01:22):
about I think what the governor said yesterday, sixty five
percent of the people in Omaha Public School District have
not filed for the credit. So that tells me a
lot of people are going to get over thirty percent
in relief that they haven't been seen.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
So that's good news.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
Other good news is we did get a cap on
city and county spending for other things other than public safety.
I think that will help do. I think that cures
all evils know. I also think there was an effort
during the session to get rid of the pink postcard,
which is very bad idea. That postcard is very effective
when you read stories about people's budget the tax people
(02:00):
who levy taxes always want to avoid that pink postcard.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
So I think that's helpful.
Speaker 1 (02:04):
Okay, the pink post guard. Define that for me.
Speaker 3 (02:06):
It is if a taxing entity raises your taxes tax taking,
I mean you check you right or your escual account.
If they raise that over two and a half percent.
Then they have to tell the people they're doing it.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
So what do you think this will do for levees?
Gene Stothard has crowed about dropping the brass or Omaha's
city portion of your property tax levee, and she has
done that. It has not mattered because people's property taxes
go through the roof. So it's an easy political name,
but it doesn't do anything for you. What do you
think this will do to school districts and to cities
(02:45):
who now have access to the levees to try and
make up for the loss in property tax revenue.
Speaker 2 (02:49):
Well, I think I'm hopeful that they're listening.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
After my eight years in state legislature, it doesn't seem
like they are, or not the vast majority of him are.
I just think people have to be more a where
when people talk about levies, you should not take that
as an answer. Ask them if they raised your taxes
or not. Is your check that you write this year
going to be bigger than the check you wrote last year?
Speaker 2 (03:12):
That's the question. And if it is, they raised your taxes.
Speaker 4 (03:16):
Yeah, and that's what's happened. I mean, you saw the
article the editor of from Jim vocal in the World
era on Sunday that was that was probably as bare
and simple an illustration of the problem as we have seen.
And yet it didn't seem to matter because we have
some members of the Camera that hate Jim Pillin so
much that they'd rather hate him than serve their constituents.
(03:37):
And you know who you are, and so do your constituents.
But what about the big streetcar project and what about
TIFF financing? What's this going to do for that?
Speaker 2 (03:48):
Ah?
Speaker 3 (03:51):
I uh, I think and I've been clear at this
from the very beginning. I put in two bills to
try and stop it. I think building is strict street
car with TIFF is a bad idea. You're building a
street car with property taxes. And I know that others,
including the mayor, will say that's not true. We're not
using taxes, but TIFF. The first word is tax and
(04:12):
creditment financing.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
It's tax dollars, State Center of Lion, lenehem with us
and the financials are based on rising property values, dramatically rising.
Address what Mayor Stouthor has said. And I had a
offer or not off the record, but a private conversation
with her, and she's seem very sincere about zero cap
(04:34):
zero potentially zero percent cap trash is the City of
Omaha's credit rating. You do you talk to her about that?
Speaker 3 (04:42):
I yes, we had several conversations and several taxes. At
one point I just kind of stopped. It's only zero
if we have deflation, and if we have deflation, people's
taxes shouldn't go up. You can't just talk about what
your needs are. You have to talk about the taxpayer's
needs when you raise when you raise taxes during the
(05:02):
deflationary period' that's double hard.
Speaker 1 (05:06):
Or zero percent in place right.
Speaker 3 (05:07):
Zero, So you can't and we actually increase the inflation.
We went from CPI to what they call SLICE, which
is city and state's cost of increasing. I just don't
buy they can't live with it. Everybody has to live
within a budget. Everybody that pays taxes does, and it's
time to tax takers live within their budgets too. That
(05:29):
matches the ability of the taxpayer to pay.
Speaker 4 (05:31):
Now you talked about slice. This is important because some
people think, well, the rate of inflation, If the rate
of inflation is two point five percent, that's how much
they should be able to raise my taxes. Slice is
what government pays for things, and that's typically higher. How
much higher?
Speaker 3 (05:45):
It's usually about one percent higher year. Over the last
twenty years it has been one percent higher.
Speaker 4 (05:49):
And what's that right now?
Speaker 2 (05:50):
Any idea I do the number five? Something comes to
my mind, but I'm not sure. So there you go.
Speaker 4 (05:55):
So they're going to get a chance to raise your
taxes by five percent. And if you can't live with
a five percent increase on top of everything else you have,
you're not managing your money very well. You're not prioritizing
city services and the people.
Speaker 3 (06:08):
The unions that the city has to deal with. And
I believe in unions they have their purpose. But the
unions know how much money you have, they know how
much valuations went up, they know how much taxes you
can take in. So when they walk into the bargaining room,
if you're not tough, they're going to ask for as much.
That's their job. Their job is to get as much
for their members as they possibly can't. Administration's job is
(06:28):
to hold back.
Speaker 1 (06:30):
The other thing that everybody needs to remember is that
this legislation I'll be thirty four, the CAPS does not
touch schools. No, this massive lobby that the educators have
they're going to be down there next session land working
on all of these new senators and everything that you
have any level of optimism that education institutions can be
(06:53):
included in this cap, that the school districts can.
Speaker 3 (06:57):
I think the biggest idea that govern and pill And
had and I agree with him wholeheartedly, is we need
to shift the funding of K twelve public schools onto
the state and off the taxpayers back. It's it's ridiculous
we have it. Well, just property taxes period, they come,
They've been around since King George. They're not a good
(07:19):
way to measure people's ability to pay. Just think you
have somebody, young couple by two hundred and fifty thousand
dollars house. Maybe they got a thirty thousand down dollar
down payment, so their net assets worth thirty thousand dollars.
But we're taxing him as if they have two hundred
and fifty thousand dollars in assets. It's just wrong and
we shouldn't tax people on the house. We need to
move away from property taxes and more onto sales.
Speaker 4 (07:41):
Tax I do have one more question for I know
around behind, but we have blue ann here, Okay, we
have elections coming up Yes. District three Felix Angermann Yes, no, Yes,
Okay to replace Carol Blood, she's a liberal. District thirty
nine yours Yes, Tony Serrentino has a problem. How big
a problem? The only one by two hundred and fift
one votes against the liberal Alison Himes who gave you
(08:02):
a run.
Speaker 3 (08:02):
Alls he has to do in thirty nine is till Eerybody.
He's the only Republican and he'll be just fine.
Speaker 4 (08:06):
Gilb District five, Gilbert Ayala, who's a real tax hawk,
beat Margot Horrez, who's a liberal Democrat, by eighteen votes.
Speaker 2 (08:13):
What about that one? I think he can win.
Speaker 4 (08:15):
Okay District nineteen Jean Regal robbed over as a Pete
Ricketts guy, Pete robbed over hurt Jim Pinnan in this race,
she leads him by two hundred votes. Can she hang on?
Speaker 2 (08:26):
I need not know.
Speaker 4 (08:28):
And then District one, Julie Slama, who lost her mind
in this legislative session, is not running for reelection. Is
Table Rock businessman Dennis Shard, who really dominated in that primary?
A tax guy or do you know?
Speaker 3 (08:40):
I don't really know him. My brother knows him. Actually,
my brother has neighbors on both sides, the two of
them in that race, so he's trying to stay out
of it.
Speaker 2 (08:49):
I don't know, Dennis, I like his opponent.
Speaker 1 (08:51):
Thanks free efforts in this session, Lauren. Really we appreciate it.
And I know you're done now because you're term landed out,
but don't leave. Appreciate you very much, Thank you, thank you,
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