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HARTINGTON — The Lewis and Clark Natural Resources District Board of Directors has approved the fiscal year 2026 budget, increasing total expenses to $3,055,003. The property tax requirement for Cedar, Dixon and the eastern half of Knox counties is set at $0.030825 per $100 of actual valuation, a seven percent decrease from last year. The Board remains committed to responsible stewardship of tax dollars to protect and conserve natural resources.
The budget includes funding to maintain, update or construct flood and erosion control structures in watersheds of the district. The budget includes funding to continue providing conservation programs to landowners and farmers to implement practices on individual farms. LCNRD also monitors and implements programs addressing water quality and quantity within the district. Other programs carried out in LCNRD include Sealed Well Abandonment Program, Deep Soil Sampling program, Buffer Strip Program, Habitat Program, Bow Creek Watershed Project, Bazile Groundwater Management Area, and Tree Planting Program. The board of directors is also setting aside funds to facilitate projects to benefit South Creek Watershed in Dixon County and/or Bazile Creek Watershed in Knox County. LCNRD partners with state and/or federal agencies for funding support to many of these programs.
LCNRD administers additional funding provided by the Nebraska Soil and Water Conservation Cost Share Program and utilizes grant funds from the Nebraska Environmental Trust, U.S. Geological Survey, Nebraska Dept. of Natural Resources, and the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy to expand groundwater and surface water protection and to implement best management practices in the district.
The budget for LCNRD includes operating costs for the Cedar Knox Rural Water Project whose operating budget is $28,767,501, which includes funding to facilitate changing the surface water source for the system from Lewis and Clark Lake to a groundwater source provided by Yankton, S.D., and to update the distribution system to facilitate the source water change and to meet system demand. All budgeted expenses and bond payments of CKRWP are paid by the customers of the system.
