Heineman, Unicameral collude to create another secret corporate tax giveaway; Nebraskans won't know who boutique legislation is for until after it passes; Large tax subsidy for creation of as few as 30 jobs

It's called Project Edge, and is a replay of the way that Utah-based Micron jerked the Unicameral's chain in 1995, before deciding not to move to Nebraska.
     Two legislative bills are involved.

• LB1118 would kick in when a corporation spends $300 million on a data center and employs as few as 30 people, at which point the firm would get refunds on sales and use taxes, property tax exemptions, and refunds on personal property tax exemptions like office machines and software. Supporters say the tax benefits to the state would be on sales taxes on the discounted electricity (see next bill) and all that income tax paid by [as few as] 30 employees!
• LB1043, which allows "economic incentive" public power district rates for data centers. Supporters claim that (somehow) other electrical customers won't end up subsidizing the incentives.

Gov. Dave Heineman is participating in the recruitment/tax giveaway incentive, as is State Sen. Abbie Cornett of Bellevue, who introduced LB1118, even though the OPPD area has already been rejected as a possible site, and even though Kearney, expected to benefit from the proposed data center, has an unemployment rate of just 3%.
     TransCanada pet and term limits lame duck Sen. Chris Langemeier of Schuyler, who introduced LB1043, urged colleagues on the Natural Resources Committee to advance his bill benefiting the corporation whose name he won't disclose to his constituents.
     The Omaha World-Herald, in an article by Paul Hammel and Joe Duggan noted:

York Sen. Greg Adams.Adams noted that despite lucrative tax breaks, the data center is projected to pay more in state taxes than it gets in credits during the first three years — almost $50 million more.

     After that, the company could claim its first refund on sales and use taxes, projected to be $21 million. By 2017-18 through 2025-26, the state would be providing about $3 million a year in tax credits, according to a legislative fiscal note.

What Hammel and Duggan did not note was the personal property tax exemptions for contractors on the project. which presumably would apply to companies like Keiwit Construction, not that it would ever bid on such a project...