The Nebraska general election for governor is set to take place on Nov. 6. Current declared Democratic candidates running against the incumbent Governor Pete Ricketts are Tyler Davis and Vanessa Ward. This past week, CourtHouse had the opportunity to interview the Democratic party’s newest gubernatorial candidate, State Senator Bob Krist.

Tax Reform

The driving force behind Sen. Krist’s candidacy is his desire for a dialogue on tax reform. He’s been vocal about partisanship disrupting the legislative process in Nebraska, and his passion for discussion showed.

“I would bring in a round-table discussion of people who’ve been there, done that, worn that t-shirt, so we can look at how [the taxes] are distributed,” Krist said.

One of Sen. Krist’s central policy platforms for his candidacy is his intent to review and revise the tax system in Nebraska. It’s a goal that has been tried by many, but without much success from either party.

“It really has not been addressed since the 60s,” Krist said. “We have a three-legged stool of taxes that supports the structure: income tax, sales tax and property tax. It’s been common that the property tax has bore the brunt of the education system. We can’t have lower property taxes in the state until we rebalance the three-legged stool.”

However, Sen. Krist’s tax plan isn’t necessarily about raising taxes on individuals or families.

“I’m not saying we have to have new taxes, or even higher taxes,” Krist said. “I just think that we have to assess what services we want to perform, and then what the proper tax law should be.”

Krist gave the example of aviation fuel tax – a tax that Nebraska hasn’t re-evaluated in 15 years. He suggested raising it by two percent, which would seemingly be a nominal amount to companies like Delta or United Airlines but an amount that would be immensely beneficial to the state government in terms of increasing revenue.

“One of the hardest things for a new governor to do is bring a budget to the legislature,” Krist said. “I’m already working on my budget.”

University Budget Cuts

Governor Pete Ricketts recently proposed a $34.6 million budget cut to the University of Nebraska due to a decrease in tax revenue over the past several years. After last year’s funding cuts, the university was forced to raise tuition prices. Now, it will have to cut disciplines in order stay within the budget.

“You can’t cut your way out of a situation,” Krist said. “When times are good, we spend money, but when times are bad, we cut, cut, cut, cut. These cuts have been devastating to the university system.”

The proposed cuts involve eliminating several degree programs, which include bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in geography, the bachelor’s and master’s degrees in art history and the bachelor’s degree in electronics engineering. The cuts would close the Haskell Agriculture Laboratory which services 28 counties in Nebraska. Teachers’ certification programs in business, marketing and information technologies, as well as French, Latin and Russian language education, would also come to a close.

“We’ve worked hard over the years to focus on operational efficiencies to spare core academic programs from cuts,” Chancellor Ronnie Green said in a statement issued on Feb. 12. “Unfortunately, now there is nowhere else to go.”

Sen. Krist was livid when it came to the budget cuts, but was composed when delivering his plan to prevent future cuts and resume growth in the academic sector.

“My colleagues have insisted that there’s so much waste, that the salaries are so high, that we just have to bring them under control,” Krist said. “I think a more stable platform for the funding mechanisms is the right way to go.”

Gun Control

After the most recent mass shooting in Parkland, Fla., gun legislation has been one of the most contentious topics in politics. Sen. Krist spoke on his experience with gun control in the state of Nebraska.

“A few years ago, the legislature and I voted for and insisted that the State Patrol, in conjunction with the Department of Education, go out and make sure that we have provided the safest environment that we can across the state.” Krist said.

Sen. Krist said he is keenly aware of the variety of needs throughout the state when it comes to controlling guns.

“What works in Omaha doesn’t necessarily work in Scottsbluff,” Krist said. “We have to be mindful that there are some differences.”

Sen. Krist also mentioned his experience with gun control debate in the judiciary committee of the Nebraska legislature.

“We’ve heard a lot of gun bills this year,” Krist said. “One of them is the elimination of the bump-stock, and a few other accessories.”

While Sen. Krist said that he was a proponent of banning bump stocks, he said Nebraskans need focus more on enforcing current laws instead of enacting new legislation.

“I think we need to make sure that we have this discussion based on the metrics and evidence that we have, which is that we have more people who have access to weapons than should,” Krist said. “If the federal laws were being enforced, I think we would have less of those people with weapons.”

Infrastructure

After Donald Trump’s State of the Union address and subsequent $1.5 trillion proposed infrastructure package, the issue of infrastructure has been at the forefront of many candidates’ minds.

Sen. Krist is no different, and he talked about some of his ideas on how to mitigate spending while maintaining continuous infrastructure development.

“Those expenditures are cyclic with the ups and downs of the economy,” Krist said. “As it cycles, we’re spending a lot of money on the Department of Transportation, roads construction and infrastructure. Then, in the next year, we don’t have any money so we don’t fund them.”

Sen. Krist mentioned the four-lane highway project, which is meant to widen roads and reduce traffic deaths. The current project is focused on US-275 but is intended to improve highways statewide until 2033.

Sen. Krist compared it to the road improvements between Omaha and Blair, Neb.

“Once we finally completed that project, there was cost overrun,” Krist said. “But when it was finished, the traffic fatalities were down 25 percent. It’s not just a traffic issue, it’s a safety issue.”

According to Sen. Krist, infrastructure spending has been mismanaged. He discussed how projects increase in cost between 6 to 7 percent every year, but posited bonding as a method to level the spending while continuing to improve the infrastructure in Nebraska.

“The past three administrations have been unwilling to talk about bonding,” Krist said. “When you bond at a five-year bond, you’re paying a 1.5 percent interest rate. But if you wait a year, it’s going to cost you 6 percent more to do that project. It’s just a matter of fact.”

Planned Parenthood

Earlier this year, Gov. Ricketts proposed a near-dismantling of Title X funding. During his budget proposal, Gov Ricketts said, “Nebraska is a pro-life state, and the state’s budget should reflect that.”

Sen. Krist did not agree, and went so far as to say the methodology used by the Ricketts’ administration to propose the defunding of health services was “completely irresponsible.”

“We’re talking about funding for health clinics all over the state, not just Planned Parenthood [and] not just people who provide services you don’t believe in,” Krist said. “If you’re pro-life, it doesn’t mean you’re just picking and choosing based on your anti-abortion belief.”

Sen. Krist also noted that federal dollars are already restricted from being allocated to the termination of pregnancies. He stated he was proud of his pro-life stance, but said he was in favor of the 20-Week Law.

Sen. Krist considered it a step in the direction of compromise, despite the law being predominantly unfavorable across the country with a 61 percent disapproval rating.

Economics

Sen. Krist also discussed how Nebraska can maintain its competitiveness economically, particularly in light of Omaha failing to make the second Amazon headquarters short-list. Other states have been throwing tax incentives at Amazon to attempt to draw them in, but Krist said he didn’t believe it was necessary to keep massive companies like Amazon interested.

“We’ve been in the business of trying to throw money at people to get them to come here,” Krist said. “In some cases, it’s worked for a period of time.”

Sen. Krist referenced how the food company Con-Agra left the state after tax incentives ran out.

“We gave them tax incentives hoping [Con-Agra] would stay forever,” Krist said. “Well, they didn’t.”

Sen. Krist suggested the best way to attract businesses is to sell them on the best qualities of Nebraska. To him, those qualities were the immense and inherent work ethic found in Nebraskans, as well as the vast tracts of land, cheap utilities and relatively strong infrastructure system.

Sen. Krist also talked about how Nebraska needs to continue developing its education system for businesses to be attracted to the state economically.

“We’re giving away the farm to get them here, but you can’t keep them here if you don’t have an educated population,” Krist said.

Final Thoughts

It’s clear that some of Sen. Krist’s past Republican ideologies still linger in spite of his recent registration as a Democrat, with issues such as gun control and abortion often touted as hard-line issues for conservatives. However, Krist’s belief in continuing to fund health clinics such as Planned Parenthood, and his belief in limiting certain weapon accessories for gun control, suggest he is worlds apart ideologically from his opponent Gov. Ricketts.

Nevertheless, the Nebraska gubernatorial race will prove to be an interesting time to measure where Nebraskan views lie. Most pundits and race trackers consider the governor’s seat to be “Safely Republican,” but time will tell to see whether a moderate Democrat in Sen. Krist can shake up the debate.

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The Nebraska primaries are May 15. Register or re-register to vote here.