Nebraska Voters’ Outlook is commissioned by and conducted in partnership with Patinkin Research Strategies, LLC, from January 31 through February 4, 2024, among approximately 600 registered voters across the state. Total results are available here. View the press release here. Perceptions Indicate that the State is Off-Track and Not Doing Enough for Nebraskans Since October 2022, the majority of Nebraskans have indicated they believe the State is on the “wrong track,” including more than half of Nebraskans (52%) in our latest public opinion poll, as noted in Figure 1 below. Additionally, only 33% of Nebraskans believe the state government is doing “more than enough” or the “right amount” to help average-income individuals and families meet their needs to succeed, while the

Nebraska Voters’ Outlook is commissioned by and conducted in partnership with Patinkin Research Strategies, LLC February 1-5, 2023, among approximately 600 registered voters across the state. Total results are available here. View the research memo here. View the press release here. Majority of Nebraskans Indicate that the State is Not Doing Enough for Working Families Our latest public opinion research indicates that a majority of Nebraskans believe the state government is not doing enough to help working families get ahead (58%). When asked open-endly what they would like the state to focus on regarding tax reform (47%), a combination of voters would like to see property tax be lowered and the tax burden reduced for the middle class while the wealthy/big corporations

Nebraska Voters’ Outlook is commissioned by and conducted in partnership with Patinkin Research Strategies, LLC October 11-13, 2022, among approximately 400 registered voters across the state. Total results are available here. View the research memo here. View the press release here. Perceptions Indicate That the State is Off-track Just four-in-ten Nebraskans (41%) believe the state is moving in the “right direction,” while half believe Nebraska is headed in the “wrong direction” (50%) as noted in Figure 1 below. A majority of Nebraskan’s disagree with the assertion that Nebraska’s state’s government is doing enough to help hard working families get ahead (61% “no”). See Figure 2 below. Public Opinion on Policy Issues Nebraskans are eager to see the state fully fund public education (69% “favor”)

Executive Summary Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) make it possible for low-income Americans, specifically children and families, to access free or low-cost health care. While some may not be familiar with the role of school-based Medicaid, others may be familiar with its primary role funding special education services to millions of students in need of individualized education plans (IEPs). A well-developed Medicaid in Public Schools (MIPS) program can bolster one of states’ largest expenditures, public education. Public schools are “among the most efficient systems to reach children and families” in terms of determining and enrolling Medicaid-eligible children and/or families. While use of Medicaid funds varies, a 2017 School Superintendents Association study found nearly 70 percent of schools use Medicaid

Nebraska Voters’ Outlook is commissioned by and conducted in partnership with Patinkin Research Strategies, LLC March 16 – 21, 2022, among 620 registered voters across the state. Total results are available here. View the research memo here. View the press release here. State and Elected Official Performance Nebraskans lean narrowly “right direction” (47%) in terms of the direction of the state[1] with four-in-10 (42%) indicating that they believe things have gotten off on the “wrong track.” Majorities approve of both Governor Ricketts’ (54% approve; 40% disapprove) and the Nebraska state legislature’s (52% approve; 34% oppose) performance in office. Nebraska voters assess failing grades on state performance in all but the provision of high-quality public education. As noted in Figure 1 below, these include

Nebraska Voters’ Outlook is commissioned by the Institute and conducted in partnership with Patinkin Research Strategies, LLC July 26 – July 30, 2021 among 592 registered voters across the state. Full results are available here. View the research memo here. Press release available here. These results come just six months after a January 2021 Nebraska Voters’ Outlook survey spotlighted large shifts to majority disapproval for state government, leaders, and policy amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and rise of the delta variant. “Approval ratings remain comparatively low at this point. Perhaps, it’s because Nebraskans aren’t getting the social and economic policies they want. And what state lawmakers have offered them instead may not be working,” explained Hadley Richters – Holland Children’s Institute CEO. Results also reflect negative assessments of

Nebraska Voters’ Outlook is commissioned by the Institute and conducted in partnership with Patinkin Research Strategies, LLC January 4 – January 7, 2021 among 616 registered Nebraska voters across the state. Full results are available here. View the research memo here. Press release available here. Respondents believing Nebraska was heading in “the right direction” fell sharply from 64 percent to 46 percent, since similar research was conducted in March of 2020. Respondents believing the state was on “the wrong track” increased from 29 percent to 43 percent over the past 10 months. Similarly, Governor and state Legislature approval ratings have also fallen, 63 percent (March 2020) v. 51 percent (January 2021), and 64 percent (March 2020) v. 53 percent (January 2021) respectively. The reasons

“Research Reveals Nebraskans’ Support on Policy Priorities, Investments vs. Tax Cuts; Dissatisfaction in Government Performance.” The Holland Children’s Institute, a Nebraska nonpartisan nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization released recent survey results of the “Nebraska Voters’ Outlook”, a statewide public opinion research initiative measuring Nebraskans’ opinions and views on the issues impacting children and families. “Nebraskans are in strong agreement on policies the state should prioritize, but show dissatisfaction with government’s performance and focus on those policies, especially when it comes to education ” said Hadley Richters, CEO of Holland Children’s Institute. “In addition, a clear majority of Nebraskans would rather state government focus on expanding middle-class opportunities, over cutting taxes for families and businesses,” said Richters. The results reveal overwhelming agreement—sometimes near-unanimity—about