The Nebraska Super Advantage Act, a tax incentive package to lure new businesses to the state, is doing its job in smaller communities as well as in urban areas.

That's the message Barry Kennedy and Jamie Karl of the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce and Industry gave at the Legislative Forum at Country Kitchen this morning. Legislative forums are being presented throughout the state by State Chamber President Kennedy and Karl , with McCook their 15th stop on the agenda. District 44 State Senator Mark Christensen was invited to attend but was absent due to a hearing in Lincoln, Kennedy said.

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The Nebraska Super Advantage Act, passed by the Legislature this year, created new incentives for businesses by requiring high-paying jobs in Nebraska. So far, it has created 14,104 new jobs, with 163 applications and about $5 billion invested, Kennedy said. The bill also includes provisions that expands the Nebraska Rural Advantage Act.

These projects are not just in the Omaha and Lincoln area, Kennedy pointed out. About 57 of them are in the greater Nebraska area, with 80 in Omaha and 26 in Lincoln.

The good thing about the incentive package is that it requires businesses to make a physical investment before the benefits kick in, he added.

The Nebraska Legislature will face a serious shortage of knowledge after this year, he continued, with 26 seats up for election this year and 15 senators term limited out after this year, seven of those committee chairpersons. This means 36 out of 49 senators will have two years or less of experience.

Kennedy expected that many of the bills proposed last year that the chamber opposed and were defeated will come up again this year. These include mandatory union fees, unemployment compensation and workers compensation. The worker's compensation, debated last year in the state legislature, would have expanded benefits to include mental health trauma due to violence at the workplace, such as a shooting. As worker's compensation and unemployment benefits are paid by business owners, the State Chamber felt it would have been detrimental.

How Nebraska stacks up to other states in the business climate is mixed but getting better, Kennedy said. Despite recent tax relief, Nebraska still remains one of the highest states in taxes.

Nebraska is the ninth highest in individual tax burdens, at 11.9 percent, a decrease from being the seventh highest last year. Vermont was number one state in individual tax burden.

Other rankings Karl presented concerning the competitiveness of Nebraska businesses compared to other states included:

* Business climate index, how taxes affect business: Nebraska, seventh highest at the 43rd spot, Wyoming ranked first

* Cost of doing business: Nebraska ranked 37 and Kansas ranked 38th. The most expensive state is Hawaii. This includes wages, electricity and rent costs. Still, if you dig deeper into the relative costs of doing business in Nebraska, it would rate higher due to incentive packages and low utility rates, Kennedy said. "Then Nebraska can stay in the ballpark."

* individual income taxes: Nebraska 37th highest, Vermont ranked first

* unemployment costs: Nebraska at 14, the best being South Dakota.

* legal environment, rate of business owners that are sued: Delaware ranked first with the fairest litigation environment, Nebraska second, followed by Maine. "Basically, If you're a business owner being sued, you're in a good state," Karl explained.

* quality of life: South Dakota ranked first, Nebraska fourth. Factors includes education quality, job security and bankruptcy rates

Questions asked after the meeting included the estimated $500 million in the state reserve fund. Some senators will want to use that money for tax relief, Kennedy said, while others will want to hang on to it in light of the cylindrical nature of the economy. There was a shortfall in 2001-02, he pointed out, and Medicaid costs are rising at 14 percent, compared to economy growth at three to four percent.