Jim Inhofe: “this amendment addresses a subject with which we are all very familiar. In the early fifties, we put together a very…”

“this amendment addresses a subject with which we are all very familiar. In the early fifties, we put together a very good and effective Federal program to reimburse the States for revenue that was lost because of Federal activities--whether it was a military base or Indian reservation--anytime those properties were taken off the tax rolls. Yet that particular type of activity brought in additional students. It was set up to reimburse the local school districts. It is called impact aid. It is one of the oldest Federal education programs dating back to the fifties. The rationale for compensation is Federal activity deprives local school districts of the ability to collect sufficient property and sales tax, even though the school district is obligated to provide free public education. Since the early eighties, impact aid has not been fully funded despite the obligation of the Federal Government to make local school districts whole.”