Otoe County

General

Population:  15,912
Land area (sq. mi.):  615.66
Population per square mile:  25.8

Race and Age

Race  2020

White: 87.1%
African American: 0.5%
American Indian: 0.2%
Asian: 0.5%
Hispanic: 7.9%
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander: 0.0%
Two or More Races: 3.4%

Age  2020

0-17: 24.0%
18-64: 55.7%
65+: 20.3%

Households

Total households:  6,390  2020
With one child:  780  2022
With 2+ children:  1,070  2022
With seniors (65+):  1,750  2022

Socioeconomics

Personal income per capita:  $57,918  2021
% of Population in Poverty:  9.9%  2022
# of Housing Units:  6,941  2020
2023 housing unit building permits:  29
Owner-occupied rate:  75.0%  2020
Median home price:  $208,250  Q1 2024

Technology

Access to broadband (100 Mbps via fiber or cable modem):  63.2%  2021

Sources: National Association of Realtors, Nebraska Department of Revenue, Nebraska Legislature, Nebraska Library Commission, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Census Bureau (building permits), U.S. Census Bureau (demographics), U.S. Census Bureau (municipalities)

Employment, Schools, and Child Care

Unemployment rate:  2.0%  Sept. 2024

County Employment Website:  https://otoecountyne.gov/webpages/links/public_notices.html

High school graduate or higher:  92.3%  2020

School Districts:  Conestoga Public Schools, Elmwood-Murdock Public Schools, Freeman Public Schools, Johnson County Central Public Schools, Johnson-Brock Public Schools, Nebraska City Public Schools, Norris School District 160, Palmyra District OR1, Syracuse-Dunbar-Avoca Schools, Sterling Public Schools, Waverly School District 145

Bachelor's degree or higher:  25.4%  2020

Community College Service Area:  Southeast Community College

Countywide child care capacity:  21 providers; 433 children  2024

Find child care:  For a list of child care providers in your zip code, visit Nebraska DHHS or the Nebraska Resource and Referral System.

Otoe County Economy

Annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP):  $1,666,186,000  2022

Nonfarm Small Business Receipts:  $80,618,348  2021

Nonfarm Wage Income:  $364,958,000  2021

Farm and Ranch Commodity Sales Receipts:  $224,835,000  2022

Farm and Ranch Operations (Non-Sales) Receipts:  $16,567,000  2022

• For components of nonfarm small business receipts, nonfarm wage income, and farm & ranch commodity sales and operations receipts, see "Notes" below.

Grain Elevators by Location (bushel capacity):

• Burr: Frontier (1,043,042)
• Dunbar: Frontier (162,427)
• Nebraska City: Frontier (646,035), Viterra (6,121,000)
• Otoe: Frontier (2,308,551)
• Palmyra: Frontier (1,758,573)
• Syracuse: Frontier (151,204), Frontier (4,152,460)
• Talmage: Farmers (2,666,246)
• (1 bushel = 56 lbs. corn/sorghum, 60 lbs. soybeans/wheat; % max. moisture = 18% beans, 15.5% corn, 14% sorghum/soybeans, 13.5% wheat)

Railroad Miles:  60.11 main, 9.55 side

• Places with Railroad Service:  Dunbar, Nebraska City, Palmyra, Paul, Syracuse, Unadilla

Local Grain Market:  Click for today's grain prices in Otoe County

Cattle Producers:  226

• Pastureland Cash Rent (avg.):  $51/acre  2024

Crop Producers:  56

• Dryland Cash Rent (avg.):  $192/acre  2024

Dairy Producers:  1

Grain Co-ops and Purchasers:  Farmers Co-op Company, Frontier

Farmers Markets:

• Nebraska City Farmers Market (May - August, Thursdays 3:45 - 6 p.m.)
• Syracuse Farmers Market ( May - September, Saturdays 8:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.)

Electricity Providers:  City of Nebraska City, City of Syracuse, Nebraska PPD, Omaha PPD, Village of Talmage

Notes

• Nonfarm small business receipts are reported by partnerships and sole proprietorships. They do not include receipts reported by cooperative associations.
• Nonfarm wage income is reported based upon the wage earner's residential address; therefore, it also includes wages earned by Otoe County residents in other counties or states, but it excludes wages earned in Otoe County by residents of other counties or states.
• Nonfarm wage income excludes wages earned by anyone claimed as a dependent.
• Farm and ranch commodity sales receipts and operations receipts are reported based upon the farm or ranch owner's principal county of operations; therefore, those figures also include receipts reported by producers operating principally in Otoe County for their production in other counties or states, but the figures exclude receipts reported for production in Otoe County by producers operating principally in other counties or states.

Well Locations (Irrigation/Livestock), Soils, Groundwater & Surface Water

Total Irrigation/Livestock Wells:  91  2024

Agricultural Wells per Square Mile:  0.15  2024

Surface Water Diversions (Irrigation):  243  2024  

Click for real time:

Streamflow data on the Missouri River at Nebraska City

Sources: National Agricultural Statistics Service (USDA), Nebraska Cooperative Council, Nebraska Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education, Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, Nebraska Department of Revenue, Nebraska Department of Transportation, Nebraska Office of the CIO, Nebraska Power Review Board, Nebraska Public Service Commission, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Energy Information Administration, U.S. Department of the Treasury (IRS), Warehouse and Commodity Management Division (USDA)

2023 Levies and Valuation

County levy rate:  $0.3053 per $100 of taxable valuation

County property taxes levied:  $8,823,567

Total local government property taxes levied:  $46,015,935

Total countywide taxable valuation:  $2,889,763,510

Federal PILT payment to Otoe County (FY2024): $6,026 regarding 1,800 federally-owned acres

Click here for all levy rates in Otoe County

County Levy and Taxation Laws

Levy limits

Since 1996, counties and other political subdivisions have been subject to levy limits under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 77-3442 and Neb. Rev. Stat. § 77-3443.

Statutes and regulations

Nebraska Revised Statutes (Chapter 77)

Nebraska Administrative Code (Title 350)

Local tax reductions, exemptions, and credits

Neb. Rev. Stat. § 76-902(5)(a) (Deed "stamp tax" exemption): "The [stamp tax] shall not apply to: ... (5)(a) Deeds between spouses, between ex-spouses for the purpose of conveying any rights to property acquired or held during the marriage, or between parent and child, without actual consideration therefor."

Neb. Rev. Stat. § 77-201(2) (Valuation of agricultural land and horticultural land): "Agricultural land and horticultural land as defined in section 77-1359 shall constitute a separate and distinct class of property for purposes of property taxation, shall be subject to taxation, unless expressly exempt from taxation, and shall be valued at seventy-five percent of its actual value, except that for school district taxes levied to pay the principal and interest on bonds that are approved by a vote of the people on or after January 1, 2022, such land shall be valued at fifty percent of its actual value."

Neb. Rev. Stat. § 77-6703(1) (Tax credit for school district taxes paid): "(1) For taxable years beginning or deemed to begin on or after January 1, 2020, under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, there shall be allowed to each eligible taxpayer a refundable credit against the income tax imposed by the Nebraska Revenue Act of 1967 or against the franchise tax imposed by sections 77-3801 to 77-3807. The credit shall be equal to the credit percentage for the taxable year, as set by the department under subsection (2) of this section, multiplied by the amount of school district taxes paid by the eligible taxpayer during such taxable year."

Sources: Nebraska Department of Revenue

State Senator-Elect: Robert Hallstrom

State Senator: Julie Slama (District 1)

Standing Committees (click for scheduled committee hearings): 

• Banking, Commerce and Insurance (chairperson)
• Natural Resources
• Government, Military and Veterans Affairs

Select Committees:

• Reference

Special Committees: 

• Executive Board of the Legislative Council

Map and statistics for Legislative District 1

Map of all districts in the Nebraska Unicameral Legislature

Otoe County History

Number of Registered Historic Places: 27

Year Authorized: 1855

Year Organized: 1855

Etymology: Otoe Native American tribe

Two years before the Nebraska Territory would be granted statehood in 1867, William R. Craig and F.W. Wood completed a grand two-story brick building that 129 years later holds the honor of being the oldest public building in Nebraska. That building is the Otoe County Courthouse.

Otoe County was defined by the Territorial Legislature on March 2, 1855, the same year that Nebraska City was platted. The county was named after the Watota Indians, one of the many tribes which lived along the Missouri River. Otoe is derived from Oto, the Indian abbreviation of Watota, which means "lovers of pleasure."

When the county was created, Nebraska City was designated as the county seat. For several years there were no official county offices. Rather, county business would be conducted from a log cabin and from rooms that were rented from Nebraska City stores.

Whether it was by design or by chance, when the courthouse was built in 1865 it was built on ground that was once part of an Indian cemetery. When it was completed, the courthouse cost $22,500. County offices were located on the build's first floor, the District Court on the second floor, and the jail in the basement.

The first addition to the courthouse was made in 1882 with a wing added to the west end. In 1936 it became apparent that additional space was once again needed and an identical two-story wing was added to the east side of the original courthouse. Ironically, the second addition cost nearly three times what the original courthouse cost 71 years earlier.

Today, the Otoe County Courthouse is among those listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Also rich in the history of Otoe County is J. Sterling Morton, who served as Secretary of the Nebraska Territory and twice as its acting governor. In addition, Morton was Secretary of Agriculture in President Grover Cleveland's administration. Despite this public service, Morton is best known as the originator of Arbor Day.

Highlight an important program in your county in this space! Send an email to:

luke.bonkiewicz@nebraskacounties.org

Communities and Development

License Plate Number:  11

Time Zone:  Central

Number of Veterans:  1,044  2023

Zoned County:  Yes

Number of County-Owned Bridges:  275

Number of County-Owned Dams:  3

Election Data

General Election Turnout:  76.91%  2024

Total Registered Voters:  10,851  2024

Number of Precincts:  10  2022

Number of Election Day Polling Places:  10  2022

Land Area per Polling Place (avg.):  61.57 sq. miles

Intergovernmental Data

Emergency Mgt. Planning, Exercise and Training (PET) Region: Southeast

Natural Resource Districts: Lower Platte South NRD, Nemaha NRD

State Lands (acres): Riverview SRA (37.79), Triple Creek WMA (80), Wilson Creek WMA (42)

Federal Lands (acres): Hamburg Bend (1,576)

Sources: Nebraska Department of Transportation, Nebraska Emergency Management Agency, Nebraska Game & Parks Commission, Nebraska Legislature, Nebraska Office of the CIO, Nebraska Secretary of State, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, U.S. Election Assistance Commission, U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (eCFR)