Lower Elkhorn Board of Directors Approve Budget for Fiscal Year 2024

Do you know your NRD? Created in 1972, Nebraska’s 23 Natural Resources Districts (NRD’s) are a unique form of local government when compared to other parts of the nation. Nebraska is the only state that addresses natural resource management concerns using this political structure.  NRDs are tasked with 12 areas of responsibility aimed at helping to conserve, develop, and manage our natural resources.

Given the fact that NRD’s are granted the authority to generate revenue by levying property taxes provides them with a consistent source of revenue that can sustain critical programs and projects, but also heightens the need to be fiscally responsible with local tax dollars. The Lower Elkhorn NRD (LENRD) board and staff work diligently to prioritize spending to ensure that local tax dollars are used efficiently.

The operating budget for Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 was approved by the LENRD Board of Directors at their September 14th meeting with a tax request of $4,896,906.  The estimated levy, based on the property tax request, is 2.2586 cents per $100 of valuation, which is a decrease of 1.66% from the fiscal year 2023 levy of 2.2968 cents per $100 of valuation.  For example, if a person owns a $300,000 house, the taxes owed to the LENRD would have been $68.90 in 2023 and will be approximately $67.76 in 2024.

The LENRD’s total operating budget for fiscal year 2024 is estimated at $12,049,933, which is a decrease of $1,795,034 (or 12.97%) from last fiscal year.

Some major expenditures for FY 2024 are: Levee/Flood Protection Projects – which includes the West Point Levee, McKenzie Dam, Winslow Demolition, and Logan East Well Projects - $791,400; Water Resources Programs - $602,700; Project Construction – Willow Creek Artesian Pressure Mitigation and Willow Creek Downstream Streambank Erosion Projects - $998,670; Conservation Cost-Share Programs – Bazile Groundwater Management Area Project (BGMA) and Willow Creek Best Management Practices (BMPs) - $670,000;  and Additional Sinking Funds – Battle Creek Project Sinking Fund ($975,000) and Flood Mitigation Sinking Fund ($250,000).

The LENRD has received major grant funding for Scribner Bank Stabilization, Willow Creek Dam Artesian Pressure, and Hazard Mitigation Plan (Federal Emergency Management Agency & Nebraska Emergency Management Agency); Bazile Groundwater Management Area and Willow Creek Best Management Practices (Environmental Protection Agency) as well as State Grants and Funds from Department of Natural Resources, Nebraska Environmental Trust, and Nebraska Forest Service.

The LENRD also received grant funding from Natural Resources Conservation Services (NRCS) for Watershed Flood Prevention Operations.  Earlier this summer, the LENRD was approved for a grant through the NRCS to help fund the North Fork Elkhorn River Watershed Plan and Environmental Document. This project is about identifying and evaluating opportunities to reduce flood risk within the watershed, notably within the communities of Pierce and Osmond. However, the study area also includes the communities of Plainview, Foster, McLean, Magnet and Wausa. The first of three sets of open houses for this project are slated for early November.

Because the LENRD strives to be fiscally responsible with local tax dollars, there is a strong focus on the continuation of allocating resources towards Sinking Funds in the budget. The funds are put into savings now to be used for future projects. “By setting money aside today into a sinking fund, tagged for use for a specific project, it helps to minimize impact to the property tax levy for tomorrow,” said Brian Bruckner, LENRD interim General Manager

To learn more about the 12 responsibilities of the Nebraska’s NRDs and how your local district can work with you and your community to protect your natural resources, visit www.lenrd.org and sign up for our monthly emails. The next board of directors meeting will be September 28, 2023 at the LENRD office in Norfolk at 7:30 p.m. and on Facebook Live.