Senate Speaker John Arch tells Regents budget will dominate session: 'The top 3 issues are budget, budget and budget'

LINCOLN, Neb. — Senator John Arch, speaker of the Nebraska Legislature, told the University of Nebraska Board of Regents on Feb. 7 that the 2025 legislative session is focused on budget coordination and longer-term planning after an era of elevated one-time federal and ARPA revenues.

“The top 3 issues are budget, budget and budget,” Speaker John Arch said in remarks to the board and campus leaders, underscoring his view that revenue forecasting and coordination between appropriations and revenue bills will shape lawmakers’ work this year.

Arch, who was reelected speaker in January, described operational changes in the legislature, including a 20‑bill limit on individual senators and an effort to reduce omnibus or “Christmas tree” bills. He said the chamber is orienting many new members and chairs to standardized processes and more consensus-driven “good government” bills. “We have 16 new senators…there’s a very steep learning curve,” Arch said, and added that committee clerks now report to the clerk to help standardize hearing processes.

Arch told the regents that the committee hearing schedule runs through March 28 and flagged the February 28 forecasting meeting as the first formal revenue projection for the year, with a final forecast expected in April to guide the Appropriations Committee. He cautioned that some senators have not previously experienced constrained revenue years because of recent federal inflows and stressed the need for statewide partnership to sustain growth: “We are together, trying to build what I would call a state of opportunity here in Nebraska,” Arch said.

Regents asked about biennial budgeting versus the existing two‑year model; Arch said the legislature produces year‑three and year‑four projections to mitigate multiyear imbalance risk but has not formally moved away from the biennium model. He also noted an internal push to return to pre‑2023 bill management practices and to limit overly large omnibus packages.

Why it matters: The speaker’s remarks framed the university’s 2025 legislative environment — a year in which budget reconciliation, revenue measures and coordination across committees will affect higher‑education funding decisions. The emphasis on workforce retention and partnerships also links the legislature’s priorities with university goals such as Project Health and workforce development.

What next: Arch said he welcomes questions from the university and closed by inviting board members to ask questions; regents responded with comments about the university’s role in state economic development and the importance of long‑term investment.