Byron Dorgan: “This is keeping a promise. What is the promise? The promise was made in 1950 that when the Federal Government comes in…”

“This is keeping a promise. What is the promise? The promise was made in 1950 that when the Federal Government comes in and takes land or has property that is tax exempt, the Federal Government will make a payment to local school districts in lieu of local property taxes. That is what the impact aid is about. We have other similar programs--PILT, or payments in lieu of taxes--but essentially Impact Aid is a promise to our local schools who still have to educate children despite their smaller tax base. Impact Aid says where we have property, and that property is tax-exempt because it belongs to the Federal Government--in most cases, for example, a military base--we will provide impact aid to offset those costs. That is what this is, impact aid. In 1950, both President Truman and the Congress said let's do this. It is not fair for the Federal Government's actions to adversely impact a local school district's financial situation. So they created the Impact Aid Program to directly reimburse school districts for the loss of revenue caused by the Federal Government.”