Tim Kaine urges renewal of PILT program in farm bill

U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine joined a bipartisan group of 15 senators to write a letter urging farm bill conferees to include the Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program in the final farm bill conference report.

PILT, which expired in June 2013 and was not renewed in the FY14 omnibus appropriations bill, 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 that use the funding to provide services, such as police, fire protection and emergency response.  Virginia counties received $3.2 million in PILT funding in FY 2013.

“Funding the PILT program through the farm bill is an important way to support rural counties throughout Virginia and around the country,” said Kaine. “This program is fully paid for and would close a funding gap that has put pressure on local budgets in many counties containing public lands, such as those in Southwest Virginia and the Shenandoah Valley.”

In a letter to the leaders of the farm bill conference 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 on 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.

The letter was also signed by Senators Michael Bennet, Mike Crapo, Mark Udall, Jim Risch, Tom Udall, Jon Tester, Mark Begich, Martin Heinrich, Ron Wyden, Jay Rockefeller, Mark Warner, Joe Manchin, Patty Murray, Mark Pryor and Dianne Feinstein.