Lifetime Citizen Portal Access — AI Briefings, Alerts & Unlimited Follows
Nemaha County board approves dozens of permissive tax exemptions, issues rulings on property protests
Loading...
Summary
Across a series of Board of Equalization meetings from January through November 2024, Nemaha County commissioners approved many permissive tax exemptions, processed tax-list corrections and denied or adjusted multiple property valuation protests after assessor review.
Nemaha County’s Board of Equalization approved a long list of permissive tax exemptions, accepted assessor corrections and resolved a docket of property valuation protests in a series of meetings between Jan. 17 and Nov. 6, 2024.
The board convened Jan. 17, elected Commissioner Bryan Mellage as chair and Commissioner Michael Weiss as vice chair for 2024, then opened and closed a public hearing on 2024 Motor Vehicle Exemption Form 457 with no public attendees. Over subsequent sessions the board approved Form 457 vehicle exemptions for nonprofit organizations including St. James Lutheran Church and several Good Samaritan Society entities; Hearts United for Animals’ vehicle exemption was tabled on Jan. 17 and approved at the Jan. 31 meeting after the board requested additional information.
Why it matters: Permissive tax exemptions reduce local taxable value for qualifying nonprofits and can affect local budgets and levy distributions. The board’s decisions also set the procedural record for appeals to the Nebraska Tax Equalization and Review Commission (TERC).
The board’s March 13 public hearing on Form 451 permissive real-property exemptions produced numerous approvals and denials recorded by roll-call vote. The minutes show approvals for churches, historical societies, Region V entities and other nonprofits; several arts-related filings in Brownville were denied. At several meetings the assessor presented tax-list corrections and valuation adjustments (for example, a $503.18 deduction for Twelve Ten Enterprises and other parcel-specific reductions or additions), all approved by motion and roll-call vote.
The board scheduled and held a set of property valuation protest hearings through July. On July 25 the board issued final rulings on a large docket of Form 522/422 protests: most protests were denied with the board concurring with the assessor’s valuations as comparable to like properties; where the assessor had viewed a property the minutes record specific reductions (land and building dollar amounts) that the board adopted. The board also denied a Form 425 (report of destroyed real property) from Dennis Hoover after finding damage did not exceed the 20% land-value threshold required for relief.
Actions taken and procedural steps recorded in the minutes include acceptance of the Nemaha County 2024 Plan of Assessment for 2025–2027, distribution of assessor notices, approval of cemetery listings, and the recording of a Notice of Appeal by Hearts United for Animals to TERC (filed Sept. 19, 2024). Several late or past‑deadline filings were denied per the minutes.
Next steps: Some decisions (for example, the Hearts United for Animals matters) prompted formal appeals to TERC, and the assessor’s Plan of Assessment will guide valuation work for 2025–27. The board’s minutes note where the assessor visited properties and where values were adjusted; taxpayers retain the right to pursue further appeals as allowed by state statute.
The actions recorded here were procedural and vote-oriented; most motions passed unanimously by roll-call vote of Commissioners Mellage, Hall and Weiss where indicated in the minutes. Diane Johnson, Nemaha County clerk, certified the minutes for each meeting and made the full minutes available at the county clerk’s office and on the county website.