Friday, March 30, 2007

Senators applaud rural funding bill

Craig, Crapo see hope for state?s rural communities


Rural schools and communities got a vote of support Wednesday, March 28, when the U.S. Senate voted 75-22 to fund the Payment of Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program and reauthorize the Secure Rural Schools and community Self Determination Act.

Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo said the vote demonstrates that a majority of senators support assisting rural counties struggling to provide necessary services in areas with large amounts of federal land.

"Without continuation of county payments, Idaho counties stand to lose millions in critical funding for schools, roads and other uses," Crapo said. "The vote to approve this amendment shows progress in our effort to ensure that rural communities do not have to forgo road maintenance and make cuts to education."

The amendment was offered by Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden with support from Crapo and fellow Idaho Sen. Larry Craig, who both cosponsored and voted in favor of the amendment.

"The original law (the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self Determination Act) became a lifeline for our timber-dependent communities," Craig said to his fellow senators before the vote. "In fact, it directly improves the lives of people in 700 counties, 4,400 school districts and 8 million kids. It helps maintain 15,000 miles of road. Letting the law die is not an option."

Craig said the compromise incorporates many of the principles he has espoused—a more equitable formula and a gradual phase-down of the program.

"Moving to a more sustainable local economy is what is best for our local communities," he said. "I could not be happier that the Senate voted overwhelmingly to include this language ... If this bill is vetoed, today's action by the Senate lays the groundwork for inclusion in a bill that will be signed."

The language fully funds the PILT program with mandatory funds. PILT is similar in that it is designed to help compensate local communities for the decreased property tax base in areas of largely public land ownership. It covers different federal lands, mostly those managed by the Bureau of Land Management, but funding of PILT has been sporadic, and critics charge that the money is a drop in the bucket for municipalities like Custer County, where more than 90 percent of the land base is federally owned.

Because the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000 is attached to a spending bill, which may be vetoed by the White House, Crapo said efforts will continue to make sure the program is reauthorized.




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