Pillen withdraws line-item budget vetoes Nebraska lawmakers said were unconstitutional
Gov. Jim Pillen talks with reporters after his annual State of the State speech to the Nebraska Legislature. Jan. 15, 2025. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)
LINCOLN — Gov. Jim Pillen on Tuesday withdrew his intended $14.5 million in general fund line-item vetoes to Nebraska's next two-year budget, ending a possible constitutional dispute among the state's three branches of government.
Pillen joined Secretary of State Bob Evnen and Speaker of the Legislature John Arch to announce an end to the short-lived line-item veto saga Tuesday. The line-item vetoes were first identified last Wednesday in a letter to the Legislature, but the actual budget bills with his marked-up objections were not filed with the Legislature until Thursday morning.
The latter is important because each line-item veto can be individually overridden, or the changes can be overridden as a group. The Nebraska Constitution requires vetoes to be filed with the Legislature within five days, excluding Sundays, while the Legislature is in session.
Pillen had said Thursday he would consult with the Attorney General's Office and other legal counsel on next steps, with the thinking being that a court order could have enforced the vetoes.
On Tuesday, Arch, Evnen and Pillen said that while they continue to disagree whether the constitutional requirement for the line-item vetoes was met, 'given how closely the budget bills match the governor's originally introduced budget,' Pillen signed Legislative Bill 261 and LB 264 as passed by the Legislature on May 15. The bills were then refiled in Evnen's office.
'That will render the underlying constitutional dispute moot and bring the matter to a close,' the three officials said in a joint statement.
Arch told reporters last week that to his knowledge, nothing like this had happened before.
The Legislature, as well as the offices for Pillen and Evnen, are in the Nebraska State Capitol. A spokesperson for Evnen told the Nebraska Examiner that both budget bills intended to be vetoed were received by the office's administrative assistant just before 5 p.m. last Wednesday.
'We fulfilled our responsibility by receiving the bills for filing,' the spokesperson said.
No one from Evnen's office delivered the bills to the Clerk of the Legislature's office, which is a responsibility of the Governor's Office.
The Legislature remained in session until 9:20 p.m. last Wednesday, but the copies of LB 261 and LB 264 that the governor issued line-item vetoes to, not just the veto letter, were not delivered to the Legislature by a midnight deadline.
The line-item vetoes sought $14.5 million in less spending from the state's general fund, Nebraska's main pocketbook that will cover a total of $11 billion in total spending through June 2027:
$11.99 million reduction of an increase to the Nebraska Supreme Court because the governor argued 'every branch of government' had to contribute to budget balancing.
$2 million cut from public health departments, zeroing out COVID-19 pandemic-era increases because the 'pandemic is over' and 'spending must be shrunk to pre-pandemic size.'
$511,972 from the State Fire Marshal for salary and health insurance premium increases because he argues the agency has 'sufficient funding' already.
Those spending decreases would not have increased the state's coffers as they would have similarly been offset by $14.5 million in fewer funds being transferred from the cash reserve fund.
A fourth veto sought to prevent an $18 million diversion of cash funds for Lake McConaughy recreational upgrades. Pillen said the project's scope has changed over many years, and further discussion is needed about how local casino revenue could support improvements.
A copy of those specific objections obtained by the Examiner indicates line-item vetoes in:
Six of the eight budget sections for the Nebraska Supreme Court (LB 261).
Two of the three sections for the State Fire Marshal (LB 261).
One of the 25 sections for the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (LB 261).
One of the 24 sections for the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission (LB 261), as well as a companion cash fund transfer (LB 264).
One section for cash reserve fund transfer (LB 264).
Lawmakers would have had until this Friday to override the vetoes had the reductions been delivered properly.
Pillen and Arch said budget adjustment measures for the 2025-27 fiscal years 'will be a priority' when lawmakers reconvene in 2026, just seven months away.
'To avoid a similar future dispute,' the statement continues, 'all parties have agreed to meet during the interim to clarify and confirm procedures that meet the constitutional requirements for transmittal of budget vetoes, and ensure they are maintained in a clear written guidance for future implementation by all offices.'
The Governor's Office has not responded to a request for comment on the current process of delivering vetoes and whether there were any variations in this process this time.
Pillen in 2023, for example, vetoed $38.5 million in general fund spending for the 2023-24 and 2024-25 fiscal years. Lawmakers overrode about $850,000 of that.
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