State review · Data version 2026.10.19.5 · October 2026

Nebraska

Requirement before grade 9

Nebraska Revised Statute 79-3003 says each school district shall include financial literacy instruction, as appropriate, in the instructional program of its elementary and middle schools, which names both levels and so reaches kindergarten through grade 8. The Department of Education's January 2022 guidance describes the same scope.

Statuses come from published law and standards and an automated second check, not a lawyer. Last verified: 2026-10-19. Report a correction

What the law says

Requirement coverage

Earliest grade covered: Kindergarten
Grade range: kindergarten to grade 8 (elementary and middle levels named)

Describes the instruction requirement found in law, not the standards. It may reach at least one grade before ninth (the earliest grade is shown, and some start only in grade 6 or 7), no grade at all (not specified), or high school only. \u201cOffer courses\u201d means the law says districts must offer the courses or instruction, not that every student must receive it.

Grades K-8

Grades required: K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Standards document: Nebraska Social Studies Standards (approved by the State Board of Education November 8, 2019) (2019)
Required by law: Yes
Delivery: Embedded in another subject
Assessed: Not determined
Funded: Not determined

The statute says 'elementary and middle schools' and 'as appropriate' without naming grades; the Department's guidance describes this as grades K-8 and says it applies only to public schools. The 2019 social studies standards list Financial Literacy indicators at grades K, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 8 and mark grades 5, 6 and 7 'Not addressed at this level'. Districts report annually to their school boards under 79-3004 on district-determined measures.

Grades 9-12

Graduation requirement: Yes
Course length: one five-credit course in personal finance or financial literacy
Effective date: 2023-24 school year

79-729(2) begins 'Except as provided in subsection (4)' and applies to students attending a public school under 79-729(2)(a) and 79-3003; the Department's guidance describes the graduation requirement as applying to public and non-public schools, which differs from the statute text.

What’s missing for K-8

A requirement was found that reaches a grade before ninth (K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8).
Instruction is embedded in another subject rather than a stand-alone course.

Pending bills

No pending bills were identified. This is not an exhaustive legislative search.

How to read the status

Status key

Requirement before grade 9: A statute or rule requires financial education and reaches at least one grade before ninth. Some start only in grade 6 or 7; the earliest grade is shown with the label.
Requirement, grades not specified: A statute or rule says students shall receive financial-literacy instruction but names no grade, so it is not confirmed to reach K-8.
K-8 standards only: State standards name a personal-finance concept at two or more K-8 grade levels, but no requirement to teach it was found.
No K-8 personal-finance standards found: A high school requirement exists, but no requirement for any grade before ninth and no K-8 standards naming a personal-finance concept at two or more grade levels were found. This describes what was found, not proof that none exist.
Study or pilot only: A task force, study, pilot, or unfunded permission exists, without a requirement.
None found: No state-level requirement or standards were found. The searches run are recorded.
Under review: Not yet confirmed. Sources found so far are shown and no status is stated.
Research in progress: This state has not been researched yet.

Sources

Nebraska Legislature. Neb. Rev. Stat. 79-3003 (Financial Literacy Act; Laws 2021, LB452, sec. 3; Laws 2022, LB1112, sec. 8). Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-15.
“shall include financial literacy instruction, as appropriate, in the instructional program of its elementary and middle schools”
Nebraska Department of Education. Nebraska Department of Education, Financial Literacy Act Guidance (January 2022). Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-15.
“Financial literacy instruction in grades K-8 applies only to public schools and must be included in the instructional programs of elementary and middle schools”
Nebraska Department of Education. Nebraska Social Studies Standards, approved by the Nebraska State Board of Education November 8, 2019, Grade 3. Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-15.
“SS 3.2.2 Evaluate choices and consequences for spending and saving.”
Nebraska Department of Education. Nebraska Social Studies Standards, approved by the Nebraska State Board of Education November 8, 2019, Grade 8. Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-15.
“SS 8.2.2 Understand personal and business financial management.”
Nebraska Legislature. Neb. Rev. Stat. 79-729(2)(a). Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-15.
“Beginning in school year 2023-24, at least five of the minimum credit hours shall be a high school course in personal finance or financial literacy”
Nebraska Legislature. Neb. Rev. Stat. 79-3004. Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-15.
“each school district shall provide an annual financial literacy status report to its school board”

Where summaries disagree with the primary source

Nebraska Department of Education guidance (January 2022) says: The graduation requirement applies to all public and non-public schools. The primary source says: 79-729(2) and 79-3003 limit the requirement to students attending a public school.

Open items are being reviewed.

Status is a judgement call: the statute's mandatory 'shall include' language applies to 'elementary and middle schools' 'as appropriate' with no named grades, so confidence is medium. The K-8 grade list rests on the Department's guidance wording. Nebraska Administrative Code Title 92 was not searched for a separate financial literacy rule. Pending bills: a legislative search of the 109th Legislature found no financial literacy bill, but the bill tracker could not be searched reliably, so pending_bills is left empty. Only the 2019 standards PDF was read; a later revision of the social studies standards may exist. Moved from k8_requirement on 2026-10-19 under one convention applied to every state: school-level words such as elementary and middle count as naming grades only if the law itself defines them by grade numbers. The guidance is not statute or rule. If the project treats elementary and middle schools as a named range this returns to k8_requirement. Nebraska Administrative Code title 92 was not searched for a grade-specific rule. Returned to k8_requirement on 2026-10-19 under the convention that a law naming both elementary and middle schools (or levels) names a K-8 range. Nebraska Administrative Code title 92 was not searched for a grade-specific rule.

Suggested citation
CENTS. Nebraska: K-8 financial education. State-by-state review, v2026.10.19.5, October 2026. https://www.centscampaign.org/states/ne