Bill Lee: “I am offering this amendment to pay back western communities for the loss that occurs to them as a result of the…”

“I am offering this amendment to pay back western communities for the loss that occurs to them as a result of the widespread ownership of Federal public land. As I have long stressed, Federal land is often a bad bargain for State and local governments, like those in Utah, where almost two- thirds of the land is owned and controlled by the Federal Government, thus prohibiting local governments from taxing that land. Not only does Federal ownership reduce economic opportunity on that land, not only does it rob local residents of local control, but it also shrinks the property tax base that Utahns rely on to fund essential community services. The Payments in Lieu of Taxes Program, or PILT, was designed to address this very inequity by paying States for the property tax revenue they lost as a result of Federal land ownership, but the current formula for PILT does not adequately compensate local governments for this loss. In fact, it doesn't even come close. My amendment offers these predominantly rural communities a revisited, revised, and improved PILT formula to compensate them for these very losses. I encourage my colleagues to support it, and I request a voice vote. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.”