Congress Approves Legislation to Provide Funding for Rural Schools
October 12, 2000

Washington, DC – A bipartisan bill to secure a stable source of funding for rural schools and counties in California has been approved by both houses of Congress and now will become law with the signature of President Clinton.

Under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act (S.1608), sponsored by Senators Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) and Larry Craig (R-Idaho), and cosponsored by Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), California would receive $64.8 million in funding for rural schools or an increase of 79 percent in current Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management funding levels.

“This legislation will greatly benefit California counties that have been affected by reduced timber sales due to restrictions to protect habitats,” Senator Feinstein said. “It provides an additional $36 million for California, representing a positive step forward for our rural schools and counties.”

The legislation will establish a locked-in dollar amount for rural schools and counties by averaging the three highest receipt producing years between Fiscal Years 1986 and 1999. Under this proposal, 80-85 percent of funding will be reserved for traditional county schools and services supported by federal revenues, and 15-20 percent of monies will be set aside for specific projects on federal lands agree to by local counties and BLM and the Forest Service.

Currently, counties with federal forest lands receive 25 percent of Forest Service receipts and/or 50 percent of BLM receipts, most of which consist of timber revenue. Under this measure, payments will no longer be tied to timber receipts. Instead, the majority of funds will come from the general treasury.