Welcome to Skagit County

May 1st, 2006

ANDERSON HITS CAPITOL HILL TO FIGHT PROPOSED 15 PERCENT CUT IN FY07 PAYMENT-IN-LIEU-OF-TAXES ACT

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On the 30th anniversary of the Payment-In-Lieu-of-Taxes Act, Skagit County Commissioner Ted Anderson this week joined a team of key county officials from public lands counties across the country to lobby Congress against a proposed 15 percent budget cut in the program. Twenty five county officials from 19 states – including North Carolina, West Virginia, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Michigan and Missouri participated.

The April 26 lobbying effort was organized by the National Association of Counties (NACo) – the voice of county government in the nation’s capital – to ensure that Congress and the administration fully understand how important the PILT funding source is to county governments.

PILT are federal payments to local governments that help offset losses in property taxes due to nontaxable federal lands within their boundaries. The law recognizes that the inability of local governments to collect property taxes on federally-owned land can create a financial hardship.

In addition, Anderson lobbied members of the Washington State Congressional Delegation about other local issues relating to Skagit County.
“We’ve had great support from our state delegation on public land issues and many successes. These revenues are deposited in the general fund to help offset our expenses for jurisdictional responsibilities on federal land,” said Anderson.
The county officials participating in the lobbying effort this week were led by members of NACo’s Public Lands Steering Committee, which reviews and makes policy recommendations to the NACo Board of Directors on all matters relating to federally owned public lands, including tax immunity problems; shared natural resource payments; payments in lieu of taxes; and federal land management programs. Anderson chairs the committee.

“Congress passed the PILT Act 30 years ago, acknowledging the important county role in stewardship of public lands and the federal government’s responsibility to pay its fair share of the cost,” said NACo President Bill Hansell, Umatilla County (Ore.) Commissioner. “These payments help counties provide police and firefighting services, search and rescue missions, and infrastructure improvements to transportation and public school systems.”