Voters to Decide Fate of Nebraska School Choice Law

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen poses with children holding up signs promoting school choice, at the state's Capitol building on May 30, 2023. Courtesy Nebraska Office of the Governor

LINCOLN, Neb.—Voters will determine the fate of new state legislation that provides a 100 percent tax credit for money donated to K-12 scholarship funds for private schools by means of a ballot question in the 2024 general election.

The Opportunity Scholarships Act, LB753, commits $50 million in tax credits for scholarships to Nebraska children. Priority is given to scholarships going for children who live in poverty or foster care, experience bullying, harassment, or other victimizing behaviors, or have a parent or guardian who is serving in the military. Gov. Jim Pillen signed the measure on May 30.

Opponents gathered some 117,000 signatures to have a question on repealing the legislation placed before the voters.

“Our goal is to give Nebraskans the opportunity to vote to repeal this harmful bill,” Jenni Benson of Support Our Schools said in a statement announcing the signature campaign on May 31.

“Our public schools educate 9 out of 10 kids in Nebraska. Strong public schools support a strong Nebraska and a strong economy,” Ms. Benson wrote. “Diverting millions of tax dollars to private schools will hurt our public schools as well as other essential public services and infrastructure.”

The Nebraska Farmers Union supported the repeal effort, saying the legislation blurred the line between church and state funding in a July 6 statement.

Support Our Schools organized petition-signing events across the state and delivered them to the secretary of state on Aug. 30. Sixty thousand valid signatures are required to place the measure on the ballot.

Governor Vows Fight

Mr. Pillen, who had strongly supported the passage of the law, questioned whether the campaign would succeed.

“The union bosses running this political campaign failed to gather enough signatures to suspend this great program. We should not be fighting this fight. With the support of the Legislature, I provided the largest funding increase in the State’s history for public education,” Mr. Pillen said in an Aug. 30 statement.

“The signatures collected will now have to be certified by the Secretary of State. If this initiative makes it onto the 2024 ballot, I can promise you the fight will not be over. I have confidence in education, both public and private. I will continue to make sure each student in Nebraska has the educational freedom to choose where they want to attend school. We will never give up on our kids,” the governor added.

Income Tax Credits

The Opportunity Scholarships Act, sponsored by State Sen. Lou Ann Linehan, a Republican, allows businesses, individuals, estates, and trusts to donate a portion of the money they would owe in state income taxes to scholarship funds.

Public schools in Nebraska are funded almost entirely by local property taxes, not income taxes.

Under the legislation, businesses and individuals can donate up to $100,000 per year. Estates and trusts can donate up to $1 million a year.

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen speaks during a statue dedication ceremony for U.S. writer and novelist Willa Cather at the U.S. Capitol on June 7, 2023. Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images

The law allocates $25 million a year for two years from the state’s general fund to cover the tax credits, starting in 2024. After that, the general fund will cover up to $100 million per year in tax credits.

Donated funds will be managed and allocated by nonprofit groups, which may retain up to 10 percent of what they receive for administrative costs. Scholarship allocations must be tracked and reported to the state.

Twenty other states offer similar income tax credits for contributions to nonprofit organizations granting scholarships for eligible K-12 students who attend qualifying schools. They are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Utah, and Virginia.

Nebraska ranks 49th in school funding. Despite that, Nebraska’s third graders placed second among states in math scores and ninth in reading scores on the 2022 Nation’s Report Card.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that the subject of the ballot question was a bill. The ballot question relates to the Opportunity Scholarships Act, which has been passed into law. The Epoch Times regrets the error.