Governor Pete Ricketts is pushing for legislation that would give military members, on state and federal levels, a 50-percent tax exemption on their retirement benefits.
Ricketts says Nebraska needs such legislation in an effort to keep retirees from leaving the state and to stay competitive for the highly skilled veteran workforce. If passed during the upcoming legislative session, Ricketts says the bill would apply to an estimated 14-thousand retirees and cost the state an estimated $15 million in lost revenue.
Ricketts says the bill is intended to replace a "clunky" state law that only provides a tax benefit to a smaller subset of military retirees. Senator Tom Brewer will introduce the bill. Senator Carol Blood of Bellevue, who represents a large number of Offutt Air Force Base retirees, says many are moving to Council Bluffs where they pay less in taxes.