Murkowski Welcomes Alaska PILT Payments
Program to Provide Essential Funding for Alaskan Communities
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) announced today that the Department of the Interior is distributing more than $30 million to eligible local governments across Alaska through the Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program. The PILT program provides monetary compensation to local governments throughout Alaska that contain federal lands that are not subject to state or local taxation. This revenue helps local governments provide essential services, such as construction of public schools and roads, firefighting and police protection, and search-and-rescue operations.
“Boroughs, counties, and parishes across the U.S. with large amounts of federal lands face real challenges in developing sustainable economies. In Alaska, the federal government controls over 60 percent of our lands, making PILT essential for community services,” said Senator Murkowski. “This funding helps keep schools up and running, provides support for life-saving emergency services, and helps ensure police officers and firefighters are able to do their jobs as effectively as possible. We worked hard in the appropriations process to ensure Alaska received robust funding for this program. Now, as the Department of the Interior disburses these payments, Alaskans across the state will benefit from this economic boost.”
Through her role as chairman of the Senate Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee, Senator Murkowski worked to secure over $514 million for the nationwide PILT program in FY19.
Click here for a link to the 2019 payments to individual Alaskan communities.
Background:
PILT provides annual payments to local governments, including counties, boroughs, and parishes, across the United States that contain federal lands. These payments help offset the cost of maintaining a variety of community services. Unlike private lands, federal lands are not subject to local taxes, often making it difficult for rural communities to budget for these essential services.
