Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen opted the state into a new federal school tax credit program under the government's One Big Beautiful Bill.
During a joint press conference held at St. Teresa Catholic School, Pillen said he was not simply opting the state into the program; he was "cannonballing" it in. He was joined by Congressmen Mike Flood and Adrian Smith in introducing the new program to residents.
Nebraska Opts Into New Federal School Tax Credit Program
In the middle of the conference, the Nebraska governor signed an executive order that opted the state into the Federal Tax Credit Scholarship program. District 3 Congressman Smith said that the decision is about students and families, as well as engagement in the community.
The program will provide K-12 scholarships for families in Nebraska and give taxpayers a credit for contributions toward those scholarships. Under the program, families who earn less than three times their area's median income will be eligible. Looking at Douglas County, this means that families cannot make more than roughly $240,000, according to WOWT.
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St. Teresa Catholic School parent Sarah Schinstock expressed her support of the new program, saying that Nebraska opting in will be "transformative" for her family. She added that this will also be true for the countless families across the state.
Schinstock said that they chose Lincoln Public Schools for their eldest daughter, who had a severe disability. She noted that the decision was because LPS received all the state and federal funding to meet their child's needs.
Helping Local Families
The development makes Nebraska one of the first states across the United States to join the new federal voucher program. It comes after state voters previously overturned legislative efforts to create the state's own voucher program, the Nebraska Examiner reported.
The president of the Nebraska State Education Association (NSEA), Tim Royers, criticized the development. He said that it undermines the clear will of Nebraska voters, who previously rejected state-level vouchers at the ballot box.
Royers added that the federal program is only a backdoor voucher scheme that will divert public resources into private systems, lacking accountability or limits. However, Pillen pushed back on these comments, saying that ballot initiatives are flawed.
The tax credit was originally part of the One Big Beautiful Bill and allows taxpayers to donate up to $1,700 to qualifying scholarship-granting organizations and receive a dollar-for-dollar tax credit. Under current legislation, the new program will take effect starting in 2027, as per the Nebraska Public Media.
