Payments were delayed, but will be received by counties by June 29
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Rep. Heath Shuler (D-Waynesville) announced that thirteen counties in Western North Carolina will receive more than $2,561,481 through the Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program to compensate them for their federal lands that are non-taxable. Amounts of PILT payments are determined by a multi-factor formula based mostly on acreage of federal land. Nationally, more than 1,850 local governments will receive PILT funding totaling $358.1 million this year. Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Swain, Macon, Jackson, Haywood, Transylvania, Henderson, Buncombe, Madison, Yancey and McDowell Counties all hold significant portions of federal lands which qualify them to receive PILT funds. (The attached chart indicates the amount of funding each county will receive.)
Payments for 2010 were delayed due to tardy reporting by some parties and the complications in evaluating payment amounts from previous years as authorized by the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act and the Mineral Leasing Act. “Although there was a slight delay in payments this year, local governments received their funds by June 29,” Secretary Salazar said. “We deeply appreciate the support these communities provide federal lands and disbursing this money before the counties’ fiscal year begins helps them budget for essential services, such as firefighting and emergency response, and allows for additional improvements to school, road and water systems.”
“Our National Parks and federal lands provide important areas for recreation, and vital opportunities for our nation to promote conservation,” said Rep. Shuler. “Growing up in the mountains of Western North Carolina, I know that National Parks are often a source of great pride for a community. However, counties with large proportions of federal lands typically have lower populations and smaller tax-bases, contributing to less revenue for the community. These PILT funds provide essential supplemental income for many of our Western North Carolina counties, allowing them to continue providing residents with strong infrastructure, good schools, and strong public safety programs. Although there was a delay in getting these payments out, I’m pleased that our counties will get payment by the end of the month.”
Background (provided by the Department of the Interior): Payment eligibility for the Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program is reserved for local governments (usually counties) that contain nontaxable federal lands and provide government services related to public safety, housing, social services, transportation and the environment.
Using a formula provided in statute, the annual PILT payments to local governments are computed based on the number of acres of federal entitlement land within each county or jurisdiction and the population within that county or jurisdiction. The lands include the National Forest and National Park Systems, those managed by the Bureau of Land Management, those affected by Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation water resource development projects, and others.
Individual county payments may vary from the prior year as a result of changes in acreage data, which is updated yearly by the federal agency administering the land, and population data, which is updated using data from the U.S. Census Bureau.
For purposes of calculating the 2010 payment, the per acre amounts are adjusted for inflation from the 2009 payment of $2.37 per acre and thirty-three cents per acre to $2.40 and thirty-three cents per acre, and the population variables are adjusted from $63.68 - $159.18 to $64.56 - $161.38 per capita. The 2010 payment will fund the authorized level of $358.4 million. This includes $400,000 for program administration.
The computation also adjusts the payment for the level of prior-year revenue payments and the amount that a county receives under Sections 6904 and 6905 of the PILT Act. Revenue payments are federal payments made to local governments under programs other than PILT during the previous year. These include those made under the Refuge Revenue Sharing Fund, the National Forest Fund, the Taylor Grazing Act, the Mineral Leasing Act, the Federal Power Act, and the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000. Sections 6904 and 6905 provide additional payments for additions to the National Park System and National Forest Wilderness areas.
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