Contact the Revenue Committee

LB670 will be heard by the Revenue Committee Thursday, March 7. Click on each senator's email address to send a message of support to the Revenue Committee today!

Senator Lou Ann Linehan, District 39
Chair of the Revenue Committee
llinehan@leg.ne.gov  402.471.2885

Senator Tom Briese, District 41
tbriese@leg.ne.gov   402.471.2631

Senator Sue Crawford, District 45
scrawford@leg.ne.gov  402.471.2615

Senator Curt Friesen, District 34
cfriesen@leg.ne.gov   402.471.2630

Senator Mike Groene, District 42
mgroene@leg.ne.gov   402.471.2729

Senator Mark Kolterman, District 24
mkolterman@leg.ne.gov   402.471.2756

Senator Brett Lindstrom, District 18
blindstrom@leg.ne.gov   402.471.2618

Senator John McCollister, District 20
jmccollister@leg.ne.gov   402.471.2622

Sample Message of Support for LB670

Below you will find a sample message to send to the members of the Revenue Committee. Feel free to personalize and add in your own stories!

"Please support LB670 (Opportunity Scholarships Act) and advance this important legislation from committee!

One of our state’s most important responsibilities is ensuring that parents can access an educational setting best suited to their child’s needs. Unfortunately, too many kids in Nebraska don’t have educational choice simply because of their family’s socioeconomic status.

But LB670 can help overcome this obstacle by providing more low-income and working-class families with scholarship opportunities using private dollars incentivized by tax credits. Policies like LB670 have been proven effective in 18 other states. They're proven to save the state taxpayer dollars and improve educational outcomes for all kids. It’s a win-win for Nebraska.

I hope that you’ll support this policy out of committee and make sure it is adopted by our legislature. Let’s give kids in Nebraska a chance at educational choice and put them on a path to a brighter tomorrow!"

LB670 and Why Nebraska Needs It

Every single child in Nebraska deserves to go to a school that best suits his or her needs, regardless of income. LB670: Opportunity Scholarships Act will create a state income tax credit for donations to scholarship granting organizations, i.e., nonprofits that turn nearly all their revenue into private-school scholarships for low-income students. The act allows for private, not public funds, for these scholarships. In 2017, Children's Scholarship Fund of Omaha turned away 635 applications due to lack of scholarship funds. We hope that the passing of LB670 will bring more opportunity for the future of Nebraska - our children! 

Educational Freedom

Parents have the right to choose a school for their children which correspond to their own convictions and should have true liberty in their choice of schools. When we have true educational freedom reflected in state and national policy, financial burden will not prevent families from choosing the education that best suits their child's needs. 

Macaria's Story

Macaria is a single mother of five children. Thanks to scholarships, all five children enrolled in Catholic schools. 

"I wanted my children to attend private schools because they have a great education and teach things like respect, discipline and morality. The future looks nice today because I can see my children attending college. I thank [generous donors] for the support that is given to us with the scholarships, because in our situation, attending a private school would be impossible - just a dream."

Education Choice Policies

According to a 2017 EdNext poll, tax-credit scholarships are the most supported (55%), least opposed (24%) type of private school choice policy. Unlike vouchers and education savings account, tax-credit scholarships allow for private donations, not public funds, to help low-income children choose schools that are best suited for them. 

Tax-credit scholarship programs exist in 18 states, including Iowa, South Dakota, and Kansas (all states highlighted below). Florida’s tax-credit scholarship program is the nation’s largest, serving more than 97,000 students a year.

How does a tax credit scholarship work?

Find more education choice policy resources at EdChoice.