August 7, 2024

Dear Speaker Arch and Chair Aguilar: 

The Center for Individual Freedom (CFIF) writes in opposition to LB 19, LB 26, and LB 48, which threaten considerable harm to hardworking taxpayers, disadvantaged communities and small businesses.  Although the taxes proposed in these bills may appear superficially small, they will add up quickly for Nebraskans who depend on the delivery marketplace the most.  

It is beyond dispute that delivery services are an increasingly central part of our economy on which consumers increasingly rely.  Over half of U.S. adults used a delivery service between 2021 to 2022, and that number continues to grow rapidly.  Nebraska should welcome the increased commerce that this new market has created for communities and small businesses, not penalize the innovators who have utilized it to bring new sources of revenue for the state.  

We’re particularly concerned about the disparate impact the proposed tax will have on Nebraska’s small businesses.  According to the Nebraska Business Development Center, 47% of Nebraska’s private workforce is employed by its membership of over 160,000 small businesses.  Many of those businesses – from local florists to neighborhood restaurants – have organizational structures inextricably tied to and reliant upon delivery services.  Tight budgets of local businesses can also increase revenue volatility from even the slightest tax increase.  That means that even marginal delivery taxes could force small businesses to cut back delivery services, forcing them to either increase prices of their goods or absorb the taxes completely.  

Additionally, LB 19, LB 26, and LB 48 will compound the economic challenges facing vulnerable, low-income families in need.  A 2018 study found that nearly 13% of Nebraskans are food insecure, and that number has continued to rise since the COVID pandemic.  Delivery options expand food access to these households – especially those in more remote areas in the state – but the proposed taxes would threaten those options.  

Other populations such as seniors, those with disabilities and others unable to easily travel will also feel the sting of these bills.  Beyond limiting their access to food and household goods, senior citizens and countless Nebraskans working part-time as caregivers to loved ones and neighbors in need often rely on flexible gig economy jobs as an additional source of income.  Delivery services can provide that flexibility, which offers an additional reason for Nebraska lawmakers to champion this growing market rather than punish those embracing it.  

For these reasons, we urge you to oppose LB 19, LB 26, LB 48, and any other proposed legislation seeking to undermine Nebraska’s economy and vulnerable populations reliant on delivery services.