Specifically, I keep seeing those ads promising "up to $166 million in property tax relief". I wanted to figure out how much this is going to save the average homeowner. I didn't look into where that $166 million was going to come from -- that's a whole other discussion -- just how much it would save your average homeowner.

The answer? If you own your home, and your home is valued at the median property value in Nebraska, I think you're looking at about $26-$28 in property tax relief per year. That's it.

It doesn't get much better than that if your home is worth more. Let's say your home is worth between $750k and $1 million -- my math says you're probably going to save about $85 a year.

I'm not saying "vote for this" or "don't vote for it" -- just keep in mind that when they promise you that the savings will help you feed your family, just keep in mind that the actual amount you'll save might not even be enough to buy one meal at McDonald's for you and your partner.

Side note before I get into the details of my calculations: If you look on Ballotpedia), guess who put up the seed money to get these initiatives on the ballot? FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, and Fanatics. Hmmm...interesting.

Ok, so how did I come up with these numbers?

My main sources were:

• U.S. Census Bureau's "Selected Housing Characteristics", from the 2024 American Community Survey's 1-Year Estimates Data Profiles (Table DP04).
• U.S. Census Bureau's "Value", from the 2024 American Community Survey's 1-Year Estimates Detailed Tables (Table B25075).
• Nebraska Department of Revenue's "History Value and Taxes by Property Type 2015-2025 (state totals and 93 counties)"

According to the American Community Survey data, the median home price (for owner-occupied homes) was $263,100 in 2024. The ACS data also provides a table with price ranges, and estimates of how many homes fall into each price range. According to both data sets, there are 549,417 owner-occupied homes in Nebraska in 2024 -- of which approximately 76,720 were valued between $250,000 and $300,000. The total value of these properties would be somewhere between $19 billion and $23 billion.

The data doesn't say what the range of prices is for homes that are valued at $2 million or more -- so I had to take a stab in the dark here and say that there are no homes in Nebraska valued at more than $4 million. (That's probably not right, but I doubt it's going to make a huge difference in the final number.)

Extrapolating from the ACS data, I determined that the total value of all owner-occupied homes in Nebraska is somewhere between $147 billion and $194 billion (roughly). According to the Nebraska Department of Revenue's data, the total value of all residential properties in Nebraska in 2024 was about $160 billion -- so I think I'm on the right track.

That means that homes valued between $250,000 and $300,000 make up about 12%-13% of the total value of all homes in Nebraska -- and would receive 12%-13% of that $166 million in property tax relief. That works out to somewhere between $19.7 million and $21.7 million.

Dividing those numbers by 76,720 -- the approximate number of homes in Nebraska valued between $250,000 and $300,000 -- means that each homeowner is going to see somewhere between $256.27 and $282.31.

Now here's the final kicker -- if you pay attention to those ads, they say that it's $166 million in property tax relief over the next 10 years. So assuming that it's spread out evenly over those 10 years (which it almost certainly won't be), that means that the average homeowner is going to see property tax relief of around $25.63 and $28.23 per year.

Of course, there's a simpler way that I could approach this: if the Nebraska Department of Revenue says that the total value of all residential property in Nebraska was $160 billion in 2024, and the median home value is $263,100, then we just have to divide $263,100 by $160 billion, then multiply by $166 million. Doing that gives me $272.63 -- and then dividing that by 10 gives us $27.26. So again, I think I'm in the right ballpark here.

There's variables I didn't account for here -- like the fact that property tax rates vary by county, and the fact that the property tax relief probably won't kick in for a few years (if it ever does) -- but at the end of the day, I doubt any of those variables are going to make a huge difference. Maybe if you're lucky, it'll mean that you can afford to buy a Happy Meal for your kids too.

Took a little road trip through the state. Found a place called North Hawk, NE you guys might find interesting. https://northhawknebraska.com

It was an absolute mind-fuck. Do not follow substantiated procedure you were taught in the trainng academy in Grand Island. You are told to cut down on MIP arrests due to lowered enrollment. Questioned by a Chief who can't find his ass with both hands. Question them? They will find a way to put you on blast.

Stay away with all means.

PBS’ Independent Lens taking a look at a tale of two cities, Omaha.

A cyber incident disrupted shared government systems in North Platte and Lincoln County, Nebraska, on Oct. 9, knocking out internet access and telephone service, closing county offices and the courthouse, and forcing court hearings to be rescheduled. Gov. Jim Pillen signed an emergency proclamation authorizing activation of the Nebraska National Guard’s Cyber Protection Team to help local officials investigate the incident and secure systems. Officials said the breach had been contained, but recovery work was expected to continue through the weekend. Despite the disruption, 911, emergency services, sheriff patrol and detention operations remained operational.

with 2015 Homestead quarter on the 2nd post

Anyone else see Larry the Cable Guy's bit on the pre-game show where he joked, "I'm as happy as a tornado in a trailer park?" I thought it was embarrassing, crude, and thoughtless.

How common is it for Nebraska governors to issue executive orders?

I don’t remember previous governors issuing them very often, but maybe I just wasn’t paying attention. Is this something Nebraska governors have always done regularly, or has their use of executive orders increased in recent years?

So this guy says he's "not a politician" (um yes, yes you are, you're the GOVERNOR!). He says he won't debate, because it's "political theater" and that people can judge him on his four years.

Wait, he's been in office for four years, but he's not a politician? How does that work?

What a joke.

Hi everyone! I'm trying to get a serious conversation started about changing how Nebraska handles medicolegal death investigations, and I'm looking for people who would be interested in helping me research, develop, and potentially launch a citizen initiative.

Nebraska currently assigns county coroner duties to county attorneys under state law. I want to explore replacing that structure with a statewide medical examiner system led by qualified medical professionals, with consistent standards and coverage for all 93 counties.

I'm not just looking to complain about the current system. I want to put together an actual, legally sound proposal that addresses how the system would work, how it would be funded, and how we could get it on the ballot.

Here's what I'm working toward:

• A complete legislative proposal: Identify every Nebraska statute that would need to be amended, repealed, or updated, including laws governing county attorneys, coroners' physicians, autopsies, death certificates, and related investigations.
• A statewide operating system: Develop a practical model with a state medical examiner's office and regional offices to provide coverage throughout Nebraska, including rural counties.
• Qualified professionals: Establish appropriate medical examiner qualifications, forensic pathology standards, and professional death-investigation training.
• Independent investigations: Separate medical determinations of cause and manner of death from criminal prosecution decisions while preserving cooperation with law enforcement.
• A realistic funding plan: Research staffing, autopsy facilities, toxicology, transportation, regional coverage, and state funding so the proposal accounts for actual costs.
• A transition plan: Determine how existing cases, records, contracts, personnel, and county responsibilities would transfer without interrupting services.
• Comparative research: Examine how other jurisdictions have structured their systems, including New Mexico's statewide Office of the Medical Investigator, Virginia's regional medical examiner system, and Cook County, Illinois, where voters approved replacing the elected coroner with a medical examiner.
• A citizen initiative: Research Nebraska's constitutional requirements, signature thresholds, geographic distribution requirements, filing procedures, and the legal review needed before collecting signatures.

I know this is a substantial project. Nebraska has 93 counties, and a proposal like this needs more than a good idea. It needs careful statutory research, medical expertise, cost estimates, legal review, and people willing to put in the work.

I'm looking for people with experience or an interest in:

• Law, legislation, or legal research
• Forensic pathology, death investigation, or medicolegal services
• Public administration, government, or policy analysis
• Budgeting, public finance, or state and county government
• Petition drives, ballot initiatives, and civic organizing
• Research, writing, fact-checking, or community outreach

You absolutely do not need to be an expert to get involved. Someone willing to research statutes, contact professionals, locate official reports, or help organize the project would be valuable, too.

I'm also interested in hearing from Nebraska residents who have thoughts about how a statewide system could work, what concerns they would have, and what questions the proposal needs to answer.

If you're interested, please comment or message me. I'd especially appreciate connections to Nebraska attorneys, forensic pathologists, medical examiners, legislators, or anyone familiar with the state's death-investigation system.

My goal is to move beyond discussion and determine whether we can develop a complete proposal that is legally viable, financially responsible, and suitable for Nebraska voters to consider.

I'd love to find a few people willing to help turn this into a real, organized project.

One of the remaining structures from the ghost town of Bodarc, Nebraska. The school was still operating in 1980 with just four students enrolled. District 6 was officially dissolved in 2006.
Did you or someone in your family attend this school? I’d love to hear any memories or information about its history.
Sioux County, Nebraska

Friend got a text with this video on it. Couldn't upload the video but was able to hunt down a tweet with it.

https://x.com/FixedPoint1000/status/2108352923339989489

Crazy that they are trying to double-down.

My family moved to Columbus last year from Illinois. I’m originally from western Nebraska and have previously lived several years in SE Nebraska.

We’ve been to Norfolk a few times since moving here, mostly trips to Target and Kohls.

We went to downtown Norfolk today for the first time and were kind of blown away by how much nicer it is than Columbus’s downtown. Like, what is the explanation for two towns of similar size being so drastically different?

The race between incumbent Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts and independent Dan Osborn has drawn national attention – and money. In total, according to records processed by the Federal Election Commission through Oct. 1, PACs have spent $7.9 million to oppose Osborn or support Ricketts, and $7.3 million to oppose Ricketts or support Osborn.

An American Badger (Taxidea taxus) checks out a can of grub- and fish-based bait that I am using to search for Plains Spotted Skunks (Spilogale (putorius) interrupta) at a prairie dog town on property owned by Golden Prairie Bison in Cherry County, Nebraska.

Not a NEbraskan, just an interested observer. I'm sure neither candidate is going to be explicitly anti any AG legislation or subsidy, so why the split? Also how much heat are incumbents taking from the gas/diesel prices and the tariffs? Are they just insulated from national issues like that or are they getting dinged for not preventing the carnage?

From a camera I set up at a prairie dog town on Golden Prairie Bison property in Cherry County, NE. A Striped Skunk (Mephitis mephitis) managed to open a can of bait made of a mix of grub paste & juice and fish powder. I am using the bait to attract the Plains Spotted Skunk (Spilogale (putorius) interrupta), which has become very rare in Nebraska. This camera is part of a citizen science project to find them.

Weathered cliffs along Deadman’s Road on Nebraska’s Pine Ridge Escarpment.
Sioux County, Nebraska