EPIC Consumption Tax

the EPIC Consumption Tax

On January 7, 2021, Senator Steve Erdman of Bayard introduced:

LR 11 CA and LB 133

the EPIC Consumption Tax.

These legislative measures eliminate Nebraska's current tax structure and replace it with one consumption-based tax, eliminating confiscatory taxes on both property and income.

Last year we ended the 106th Nebraska Legislative Session without advancing LR 300 CA out of the Revenue Committee. This year Sen. Erdman has re-introduced the resolution with a companion implementation bill for the 107th Legislature.

Actions Needed

1. Select 1 or more of these 6 reasons to share in your letter to your Senator, asking him/her to VOTE YES at cloture and VOTE YES for LR11CA at the end of the General File floor debate which is scheduled for Wednesday, 5-5-21. 2. We need time to gather more economic data between General File and Select File. 3. Add a short story or observation so that your letter is less than 1-page total length. This greatly increases the potential that the senator will read your letter AND may even opt to read it to colleagues during floor debate!

REASON #1: Consumption Tax is designed so low-income citizens will pay fewer taxes than they currently pay. At the beginning of each month, all citizens will receive a monthly allowance or pre-bate to pay for the consumption tax on food, clothing, and shelter up to the national poverty level. The monthly check will be based on the number of dependents living in that family on January 1st of each year. There is NO CONSUMPTION TAX paid on used retail purchases of cars, furniture, or clothes, so this means low-income families and all other families will be saving dollars on those purchases for the first time ever in our state!

REASON #2: Consumption Tax also benefits the middle-class citizens who will pay fewer state taxes than they currently pay. Many middle-class families take great pride in the homes that they own, so they will be saving the $50 to $250 dollars EACH MONTH that they are currently paying in real estate taxes. They’ll also save the personal property taxes of $20 to $80 per month for each vehicle that they own or lease.

REASON #3: Hard Work Ethic & Saving will be rewarded thru the elimination of state income taxes and inheritance taxes. Citizens will have real incentives to study, earn degrees beyond high school diplomas, and advance their careers to earn more money, invest more of their net take home pay, grow their net worth, and live in more expensive home OR perhaps go on a luxury trip in the USA or travel abroad.

REASON #4: Consumption tax is simple to understand. Each citizen will decide WHEN they want to pay Consumption Tax – today or later because buying used products are a better economic decision for me today. The result? Our current mind-boggling state sales tax formulas will be eliminated.

REASON #5: Every citizen decides when to pay their taxes. When buying a retail product or services, there will be NO consumption tax collected by the merchant on usedcars, used homes, used clothing, or used equipment. Consumption tax is only paid ONCE on each new retail product or service when it is purchased.

REASON #6: All legal residents of Nebraska, whether living in metro Omaha or Lincoln, or living in the smallest village, or living on an acreage, will save property tax dollars each month.

REASON #7: Renters will benefit after the property taxes have been eliminated across the state after 1 year. Property taxes are passed through from the landowner to the renter, as the landowner currently adds to the taxes to other expenses of ownership such as repairs, depreciation, maintenance, snow removal, yard care, etc., to determine the monthly rent payments.

REASON #8: Total Retail Consumption taxes will expand annually in Nebraska when business owners and leaders from surrounding states of CO, WY, SD, IA, MO, and KS move their current businesses to Nebraska because they will no longer want to pay the burdensome state taxes that they are required to pay.

REASON #9: The business environment will flourish because businesses will NOT PAY consumption tax on equipment, buildings, tools, computers, or software. The list of agri-business equipment where NO Consumption Taxes will be paid includes: tractors, tillage equipment, planting equipment, combines, trucks, feedlots, corrals, and water wells. City-based business will pay ZERO CONSUMPTION Taxes on operational expenses like printing presses, lawn mowers, roofing escalators, high-reach equipment, semi’s, etc.

What to do:

1. Please contact your state senator and urge them to VOTE YES for Cloture and VOTE YES for LR11CA. Tell your senator that a second economic study is being conducted NOW with its economic data to be shared with all Senators shortly after Select File Floor debate is scheduled. (If your senator is a co-sponsor, please tell them THANK YOU for being a leader of a conservative issue like saving taxes! Co-sponsors names are highlighted in green and also have an asterisk after their last name).

2. Find your senator’s name and contact information at the State of Nebraska's website by clicking here. In your letter, be sure to mention that you are a constituent — that carries a lot of weight! When implemented, EPIC Consumption Tax will help business leaders, farmers, and ranchers compete on the world stage again after the burdensome Nebraska property – income – sales – and inheritance taxes have been eliminated. It will also be a major step to help stop the brain drain and senior drain leaving Nebraska.

Find Your State Senator

3. If you have time to email senators besides your own, the following senators still are considering their decision. Please send them a personalized email letter as well. Just click on the appropriate link below:

4. If you have even more time to email senators not on the list above, you may send them a personalized email letter . Select names from a list by clicking here.

Pick a Senator from this List