LINCOLN, Neb. — Legislation designed to provide tax incentives to keep Union Pacific’s headquarters in Omaha faced no opposition during a hearing in the Nebraska Legislature on Wednesday, Feb. 25.
While Legislative Bill 1165 does not mention UP, its sponsor, state Sen. Brad von Gillern (R-Elkhorn), told the Revenue Committee hearing that it’s no secret what prompted the bill.
“LB1165 has been referred to by name as the ‘Union Pacific merger bill’ by some,” von Gillern said in remarks reported by Nebraska Public Media. “I suppose that’s not entirely incorrect, although you’ll not find their name anywhere in the bill. The Grow the Good Life Act is not about corporate welfare, as some will try to say. It’s not about a headquarters building. It’s not about a quarterly earnings report. It’s not about a stock price. It’s not about a merger. It’s about people.”
UP has said it plans to remain in Omaha since it announced plans to merge with Norfolk Southern, but von Gillern told the hearing that the state is at risk of losing the railroad to Georgia, where NS opened a new headquarters in 2021 [see “Norfolk Southern opens new headquarters,” Trains.com, Nov. 11, 2021].
“We can’t afford to sit around,” von Gillern said, according to the Nebraska Examiner, “and wait for the next headline that reads: Company X let 2,000 people go or Company Y reorganized and 3,000 jobs left the state.”
Eleven speakers testified in favor of the bill, with none against. Among those appearing in support: UP Chief Human Resources Officer Josh Perkes, who said the railroad contributes to communities in the state with an annual payroll of more than $800 million and has invested $1.5 billion in Nebraska infrastructure over the last five years.
Von Gillern said the bill is a “pay for performance” plan, requiring businesses to hit certain targets to receive the incentives. Analysis by the state Department of Revenue estimates the bill would create an $8.7 million loss to the state’s general fund in 2026-27, the Examiner reports, and $4.58 million the following year; von Gillern says those figures should change after recent modifications to the bill.
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