Through the federal process, agencies get to keep 80 percent of the money or proceeds; the state process requires a 50-50 split, with half going to the law enforcement agencies that seized it, and the other half going to local school districts.

Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer, in a letter last week to state senators, said that if the amendment was adopted, Omaha police would lose about $500,000 a year in funds that finance advanced training.

The amount of money lost may be less than that. Greg Gonzalez, the department’s liaison with the Legislature, said $500,000 is the average submitted to the feds each year, so 80 percent is what would come back, or $400,000. And if the Omaha department was forced to use the state system, it would get half of the $500,000, or $250,000. So the department would actually lose $150,000 in funds.

Still, that’s a lot of money, Gonzalez said.

And Polikov said there’s a good argument to be made that it’s better to have bad guys finance some law enforcement expenses than seeking more funding from taxpayers.

“Homeowners are whining more about taxes than drug dealers” who forfeit property, he said.