By Erin Bamer | Nebraska Examiner
LINCOLN — Nebraska’s general fund tax receipts for November grew modestly above recent projections, but it may not help fill the budget hole state lawmakers are tasked with filling in January.
Nebraska’s November tax receipts show a net growth of 3.1% over what Nebraska’s Economic Forecasting Advisory Board predicted in October, according to the state Department of Revenue.
That equates to just under $18 million in extra revenue into the state’s coffers. However, Legislative Fiscal Analyst Keisha Patent said those dollars won’t go directly into Nebraska’s general fund.
By state statute, the extra revenue will go into the state’s cash reserve or the School District Property Tax Relief Credit Fund, depending on how much the amount ends up above forecasts.
Nebraska’s projected budget deficit currently stands at $471 million, which lawmakers are tasked with filling before the 2026 legislative session concludes. Lawmakers grappled with a fluctuating budget shortfall that at one point grew to $432 million during the 90-day session this spring.
Most specific tax revenues came in modestly above projections, including individual income taxes, sales and use taxes and miscellaneous taxes. The sole outlier was corporate income taxes, which came in roughly 78% below forecasts.
Patent said she wasn’t sure why corporate income taxes came in low, but noted the corporate tax returns tracked with October’s general fund receipts. She said she expects corporate tax revenues will bounce back in December, as historically the month has brought in high revenues for the state.
State Sen. Rob Clements of Elmwood, who chairs the Nebraska Legislature’s Appropriations Committee, said he was “encouraged” by November’s tax receipts, calling it a signal that Neraska’s economy is stable.
As for how the additional revenue will impact the budget deficit, Clements said he is open to using rainy day funds to fill the shortfall, but he expects he and other lawmakers will be stingier with the cash reserve compared to other funds.
Nebraska’s cash reserve is estimated to be at about $669 million by the end of the current budget cycle.
Last year, Gov. Jim Pillen’s budget proposal and state lawmakers swept funding from dozens of different cash funds in order to fill the projected deficit, but Clements said some cash funds were unaffected.
Those may be tapped in 2026, he said.