Please read this post. As you read it, please ask yourself, is this the Nebraska you want?
Nebraskans are hard-working, lovely people, but some of the laws that are used by counties to control the people are as one court judge put it, “obscene”.
Nebraska is one of 13 states that allow the 3rd party purchase of liens to pay back taxes. This law dates all the way back to the 1870s. What does this mean? Meet Kevin Fair from Scottsbluff. Last week a writ of certiorari was filed with the Supreme Court in an attempt to vacate the Scotts Bluff County officials taking of this man’s property for nonpayment of a $588.21 tax bill.
Kevin Fair and his now deceased wife owned a home valued at $60,000. There was no mortgage. Kevin fell behind on his taxes when his wife who worked at Walmart fell ill with MS. She later died. With all the extra expenses and care for his dying wife, he fell behind on his property taxes. The county came in, insisting he pays his $588.21 in back taxes. They applied a tax lien and then using what is known as predatory tax law, they sold the lien to a 3rd party so they can collect the tax money. The third-party has to hold the lien for 3 years then they can take the property. In Mr. Flair’s case, the 3rd party paid the fines, taxes, and interest totaling $5,200 and took Mr. Flair’s $60,000 home that he and his wife bought over time. A home they worked their entire life to own.
This happens in Nebraska. Counties sell tax liens all the time. Early an elderly 94-year-old widow living in a nursing home, here in Nebraska, lost her 1.1 million dollar farm for nonpayment of $50,000 in taxes. This happens here, in Nebraska.
Most other states will sell your property when you fall behind on taxes and give you the sale price minus the past due taxes. This is fair because bottom line, people need to pay taxes to support our services. Forcing the sale of your property and then not giving you the value less taxes is just wrong. Allowing a 3rd party to come in and take over your property for taxes is obscene.
Your elected officials make these choices. Or sure, they will say “we are controlled by the state”, “it is state law”, or “our hands are tied”. That is a load of hogwash. Below we will link to the state law controlling these sales. How a law is enforced is up to LOCAL officials. Just like a District Attorney or County Attorney can decide how a law is applied, taxing authorities have the same power. In the law, which I enforced for 22 years, the word “may” gives discretion. Shall is a word that takes it away. So when you read “The Tax Commissioner may present for filing or file for record in the office of the appropriate filing officer a notice of lien” as outlined in Nebraska 77-3904 (2) (a) this is up to the elected official. The official can delay it for 10 or more years if they decide to. Just like that police officer, who can decide whether you get a ticket or not for speeding. So when you read, Nebraksa 77-3904 (4) “The lien may, within ten years from the date of filing for record of the notice of lien in the office of the appropriate filing officer, be extended….” the official can extend the enforcement period for several years if they decide to do that. It is their discretion. They need to file a “continuation statement “ to do that, but the majority of the time they just put the lien up for sale.
We control how these laws are applied by who we elect. Please remember that. San Francisco didn’t like how the District Attorney applied the laws so they replaced him. The final power in ALL things belongs to the residents of Nebraska and the residents of this county. I will put a link to the law below. The Nebraska Department of Revenue publishes a report on each county every year on delinquent taxes. I will post a link for that as well. I will also post a link to Scottsbluff’s Star Herald where they are thankfully telling everyone about this injustice by the county officials.
Mr. Fair lost his home to an “investment” company out of Omaha. This company uses state law and county officials to take property and make profits. It is all legal. It is also obscene that county officials allow this to happen. Most people here in Nebraska don’t even know.
Requirements AFTER a lien is filed with the state.