Senators work to fund PILT

January 16, 2014

On Wednesday, U.S. Senators Mike Crapo, Michael Bennet, Jim Risch and Mark Udall sent a bipartisan letter signed by a coalition of senators to the leadership of the Farm Bill conference committee requesting that funding for the Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) Program be included in the final Farm Bill conference report.

PILT provides federal payments to local governments to help offset losses in property taxes due to nontaxable federal land within their boundaries. These resources are critical to rural counties across the U.S. that use the funding to provide services, such as police, fire protection, emergency response.

In Boundary County, nearly 75-percent of the land is federally owned.

In a letter to Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow and Ranking Member Thad Cochran of the Senate Agriculture Committee, the senators wrote, “Counties across the country, particularly those containing significant federal landholdings rely on PILT funds as sizeable percentages of their budgets. Many of the same rural counties that rely on programs in the Farm Bill also depend of PILT to sustain their economies and serve their citizens”

“Without an extension of PILT, rural counties will face drastic budget cuts in June and may struggle to fund the most basic of services,”the senators added.

At this point, the letter has been signed by Michael Bennet (D-Colorado), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Mark Udall (D-Colorado), James Risch (R-Idaho), Tom Udall (D-New Mexico), Jon Tester (D-Montana), Mark Begich (D-Alaska), Martin Heinrich (D-New Mexico), Ron Wyden (D-Oregon), Jay Rockefeller (D-West Virginia), Joe Manchin (D-West Virgina), Patty Murray (D-Washington), Mark Pryor (D-Arkansas), Tim Kaine (D-Virginia), Dianne Feinstein (D-California) and Mark Warner (D-Virginia).

Idaho Senators Mike Crapo and Jim Risch have fought to prioritize the PILT program and oppose cuts to its funding.

In 2013, when the Obama administration announced the decision to cut PILT funding due to sequestration, Crapo and Risch called the decision “baseless” and one that could “have significant impacts on local communities.”

In FY 2013, Idaho received $26.3 million in PILT payments.

Bennet, who serves as a member of the Farm Bill conference committee, and Udall have been strong advocates for fully funding the PILT program. They have actively pushed essential Senate committees to prioritize PILT funding, and in 2012 the senators led the fight in support of PILT and the Secure Rural Schools funding, which was secured in the transportation bill.