Nebraska earns a C- for its civil forfeiture laws
Standard of Proof
Somewhat higher bar to forfeit: Prosecutors must provide clear and convincing evidence that property is connected to a crime. (The prior edition reported Nebraska had only criminal forfeiture based on a reform that inadvertently contained a major loophole allowing most civil forfeitures to continue.)
Innocent Owner Burden
Poor protections for the innocent: Third-party owners must prove their own innocence to recover seized property.
Financial Incentive
Large profit incentive: 50% of forfeiture proceeds go to law enforcement.
The letter grade reflects Nebraska’s forfeiture laws as of May 7, 2025. When we become aware of relevant reforms, we are updating the standard of proof, innocent owner burden, and financial incentive language above, but we are not updating the letter grade.
Note: Prosecutors need only meet their standard of proof—and owners can only prove their innocence—if owners make it to a judicial hearing. See flow chart.
Recent Reforms
Recommendations
What happens after personal property is seized in Nebraska?
Under Nebraska law, if you file an answer to the prosecutors’ complaint, a judicial hearing must be held within 90 days of the seizure. While you wait, the government has your property, and only innocent owners of record can try to get it back by petitioning the court.
*At any time before the court orders forfeiture, innocent owners of record can petition the court for return of their property.
For research methods and limitations, see “How We Documented Civil Forfeiture Processes From Seizure to Hearing.”
State and Federal Forfeiture Proceeds, 2000–2023
At least $116 million in state and federal forfeiture revenue
| Year | Nebraska Forfeiture Revenues | Dept. of Justice Equitable Sharing Proceeds | Treasury Equitable Sharing Proceeds | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Unknown | $2,089,356 | $7,000 | $2,096,356 |
| 2001 | Unknown | $1,536,488 | $22,000 | $1,558,488 |
| 2002 | Unknown | $826,487 | $0 | $826,487 |
| 2003 | Unknown | $3,949,404 | $687,000 | $4,636,404 |
| 2004 | Unknown | $3,358,978 | $341,000 | $3,699,978 |
| 2005 | Unknown | $2,284,353 | $20,000 | $2,304,353 |
| 2006 | Unknown | $5,348,456 | $12,000 | $5,360,456 |
| 2007 | Unknown | $4,087,991 | $55,000 | $4,142,991 |
| 2008 | Unknown | $4,929,203 | $0 | $4,929,203 |
| 2009 | Unknown | $6,472,205 | $17,000 | $6,489,205 |
| 2010 | Unknown | $3,829,511 | $0 | $3,829,511 |
| 2011 | Unknown | $4,510,690 | $56,000 | $4,566,690 |
| 2012 | Unknown | $2,750,340 | $1,548,000 | $4,298,340 |
| 2013 | Unknown | $2,662,935 | $150,000 | $2,812,935 |
| 2014 | Unknown | $2,389,119 | $1,861,000 | $4,250,119 |
| 2015 | Unknown | $1,788,035 | $3,238,000 | $5,026,035 |
| 2016 | $854,988 | $1,532,866 | $1,721,000 | $4,108,854 |
| 2017 | $2,687,352 | $1,522,233 | $605,000 | $4,814,585 |
| 2018 | $3,992,148 | $3,055,843 | $1,699,000 | $8,746,991 |
| 2019 | $2,947,561 | $2,224,424 | $2,936,000 | $8,107,985 |
| 2020 | $384,201 | $1,052,621 | $6,370,000 | $7,806,822 |
| 2021 | $6,789,722 | $1,018,649 | $3,469,000 | $11,277,371 |
| 2022 | $480,073 | $1,440,614 | $5,940,000 | $7,860,687 |
| 2023 | $202,820 | $1,463,414 | $1,712,000 | $3,378,234 |
| Totals | $18,338,865 | $66,124,215 | $32,466,000 | $116,929,080 |
All revenue figures include both civil and criminal forfeitures. Revenues are not adjusted for inflation.
Federal Equitable Sharing
Since July 2016, Nebraska has prohibited transferring property of $25,000 or less to a federal agency for equitable sharing unless the property is seized by a federal agent or there is an associated federal prosecution. IJ’s analysis (see “Evaluating Efforts to Reform Equitable Sharing”) found that, relative to non-reform states, the reform resulted in immediate reductions in the sharing of below-threshold assets and assets overall. However, below-threshold sharing and sharing overall increased in the long run. From 2017 to 2023, Nebraska law enforcement agencies generated nearly $35 million in equitable sharing proceeds. And on average from 2019 to 2023, 55 Nebraska agencies, or an estimated 28% of all law enforcement agencies in the state, were certified for the program.
Forfeitures Under Nebraska Law: Key Facts
Median Value
$1,030
From 2019 to 2023, half of Nebraska’s currency forfeitures were worth less than $1,030.
Property Types
From 2019 to 2023, at least two-thirds of Nebraska’s forfeitures were of currency.
Proceeding Types
UNKNOWN
Nebraska proceeding type data were not used for this report due to a high proportion of unknowns.
Outlier County
Seward County, Nebraska, has a well-documented history of forfeiture abuse. And indeed, our data show that from 2019 to 2023, it recorded nearly $200 in forfeiture revenue per resident—almost exclusively from property seized on I-80.
Forfeiture Transparency and Accountability Report Card
Tracking Seized Property
CStatewide Forfeiture Reports
BPenalties for Failure to File a Report
F*Accounting for Forfeiture Fund Spending
FAccessibility of Forfeiture Records
BFinancial Audits of Forfeiture Accounts
F*Agencies must file even when they have nothing to report.
For full transparency and accountability grades, visit ij.org/TransparencyReportCards.
Data Notes
Agency forfeiture reports with property-level data were downloaded from the state auditor of public accounts’ website. Revenues represent the value of forfeited currency and property reported in a calendar year. The spike in 2021 is attributed to exceptionally high forfeiture activity in Seward and Lancaster counties. Equitable sharing data are from DOJ’s and Treasury’s annual forfeiture reports. Due to differences in reporting and accounting practices, figures may not match aggregate numbers produced by the state or cover the same 12-month period as the federal data. See Appendix C, available online at ij.org/report/policing-for-profit-4/appendix-c-equitable-sharing-methods/, for details of the equitable sharing reform analysis. The number of certified agencies was computed using the approved Equitable Sharing Agreement and Certification requests submitted by police, sheriff, and other local law enforcement agencies. The percentage of certified agencies was computed using that number and the total number of agencies reported in the 2018 Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies.
Legal Sources
Standard of proof: Clear and convincing evidence.
Neb. Rev. Stat. § 28-431(6).
Innocent owner burden: Owner.
Neb. Rev. Stat. § 28-431(5)–(6).
Financial incentive: 50%.
Neb. Const. art. VII, § 5(2); Neb. Rev. Stat. § 28-1439.02.
Process: Neb. Rev. Stat. § 28-431 (forfeiture procedure).