As local budget discussions commence statewide, it is imperative to stress that managing property taxes begins with controlling spending, at every level. This occurs at local budget hearings, including those for county, school board, city, NRD, ESU, and fire board, where taxpayers have the opportunity to hold local officials accountable. Staying informed and engaged is essential to manage your property taxes.

Your tax bill is calculated by combining your property's assessed value with the levy set by your local elected officials. The formula is straightforward:

Assessed Value × Levy ÷ 100 = Tax Bill

Even if levies remain unchanged, higher valuations will lead to increased taxes. Local taxing authorities must act responsibly; as property values increase, levies should be proportionally adjusted downward.

We must remember that the state property tax credit is not a permanent solution and is not actually decreasing taxes. This underscores the critical need for constituents to voice their concerns to local elected officials who are in the season of determining your next property tax bill. I encourage you to engage and have included a brief timeline of the budget process below: 2025–2026 Budget Timeline: Key Dates for Your Community To stay informed about your community's budget process, please refer to the following important dates: https://auditors.nebraska.gov/Budget_Info/B20252026/2025_Budget_Updates_Slides.pdf

• Sept. 1: The Village Board / City Council determines the final levy allocation.

• Sept. 4: This is the deadline for Joint Public Hearing participants to provide information to the County Assessor. The County Clerk will inform the Assessor of the hearing's date, time, and location.

• Sept. 14–23: Joint Public Hearings are conducted during this period.

• 10 days after hearing: The County Clerk provides the Joint Public Hearing Report to all participating subdivisions.

• Sept. 30: Budgets and the Interlocal Agreement Report must be filed with both the County and State Auditor.

These are crucial weeks for the decisions affecting your bill. Stay engaged. Attend hearings. Ask questions. Ensure your local officials are setting fair levies. For more information, please visit: https://auditors. nebraska.gov/Budget_Info.html In other news, Nebraska’s leaders in government, industry, and agriculture convened last week for the 2025 Governor’s Summit: Growing Nebraska. The event centered on strengthening the state’s workforce, manufacturing sector, and bioeconomy. Governor Jim Pillen, alongside Husker Football Coach Matt Rhule, opened the summit, emphasizing innovation, collaboration, and efficiency. Throughout the day, attendees participated in breakout sessions covering critical areas such as workforce development, automation in manufacturing, and advancing Nebraska’s bioeconomy, which includes ethanol, biotechnology, and water technology.

Agriculture is foundational to Nebraska’s economy and as a rancher and representative for rural Nebraskans, I was also pleased to join the Governor at the Midwest Agricultural Export Summit in Sioux Falls, SD, where the Governor met with delegates from Japan, Taiwan, India, Great Britain and Kenya to promote Nebraska products.

As always, please do not hesitate to reach out to me. Facebook: Tanya Storer for Legislature; Email: tstorer@leg.ne.gov; Phone: (402) 471-2628. Respectfully, Senator Storer