(AP) — Nebraska lawmakers are being urged yet again to help local governments lower their property taxes.

The calls for reform on Friday came during the final public-input hearing of the Legislature’s Tax Modernization Committee. Lawmakers are looking at changes to make the system simpler, competitive and more equitable.

Alvin Guenther, a retired educator from Dunbar, says his property tax bill doubled between 2008 and 2012 for two land parcels that he owns. Guenther criticized the state’s business tax incentives, saying they were enacted without clear goals.

John Cederberg, treasurer of the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce, says the best way to reduce property taxes is by growing Nebraska’s urban economy to increase the sales and income tax base.

West Point Mayor Marlene Johnson says the state should restore aid to cities.