Lawmakers shouldn’t try to fill every wish, despite revenues

Nebraska lawmakers face a unique and unusual challenge as they begin the 2022 legislative session this week, which may feel to some like an extended Christmas season with ample resources available to go out and fill every wish on the list.
On behalf of this and future generations, we would say please don’t! This state prides itself on fiscal spending restraint and now is not the time to discard those values, despite the lottery-size pool of money there for the taking.
There are so many issues at play as this year’s 60-day session begins, but clearly the influx of revenue will drive the agenda. Between COVID relief funds (estimated at $1.04 billion), some $400 million in unexpected state general fund revenues and a ballooning cash reserve fund there is in fact a lot of money waiting to be spent.
A closer look at some of those totals, however, confirms that the upward trajectory is simply not sustainable. Our state and national economies remain in a strange state of flux due to uncertainty caused by the pandemic, thus lawmakers should avoid the temptation of going on a spending spree simply because there is room on the credit balance and/or the check won’t bounce, today.
Ask a Nebraska farmer what they would do with $7 corn proceeds and you’ll likely get an answer we hope to see and hear in Lincoln between now and mid-April. Stay true to your tried and true conservative values. Spend every dollar wisely. And by all means maintain or perhaps even build up that rainy day fund because you know darn well there will be tougher times ahead.
A useful guideline for how to grow Nebraska’s economy, long-term, already exists in the Blueprint Nebraska model. A great deal of time and effort went into that project BEFORE the pandemic hit, which means some of the core principles are grounded in research and reason rather than a knee-jerk response to a windfall of revenue. Bottom line, efforts to lower the income tax rate, create more housing, expand the state’s workforce and improve water, sewer and broadband infrastructure should be the top priorities. Lawmakers should also strive to limit spending bills to one-time use projects, rather than multi-year commitments that could in effect end up growing the state’s budget.
The dynamic will indeed be different this year in the Unicameral. We hope and trust that Nebraska lawmakers will not try to be Santa’s wish-list helper, but instead take a conservative approach to long-term growth and stability.
Kurt Johnson