This bill extends the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000, including its payment and project authorities, through 2026, 2028, or 2029, and includes technical corrections.
Joe Neguse
Representative
CO-2
This bill extends the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000, continuing crucial funding mechanisms for counties reliant on federal forest revenues through 2026 and beyond. It also streamlines payment elections for fiscal years 2024 and 2025 and extends related project and spending authorities. Finally, the legislation includes minor technical corrections to the existing Act.
Rural County Funding Extended Through 2026: Automatic Payments Simplify Life for Federal Land Communities
The Secure Rural Schools (SRS) Act is one of those crucial but little-known laws that keeps the lights on in many counties across the country. Essentially, it provides federal payments to counties that have significant amounts of federal land—land that can’t be taxed locally. This new legislation is straightforward: it extends the SRS Act’s main funding programs from their 2023 expiration date through 2026.
The Lifeline for Local Budgets
For counties with large stretches of national forest or other federal acreage, these SRS payments are a massive deal. They fund essential services like schools, roads, and emergency services. Without this extension, those budgets would have faced a serious cliff. The bill also extends the authority for the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct special projects on federal land until 2028 and allows counties to spend those funds until 2029. This means continued funding for things like forest health initiatives, fire mitigation, and trail maintenance, which directly impacts local contractors and outdoor recreation.
Cutting the Red Tape for 2024 and 2025
One of the most practical changes in this bill involves how payments are handled for the next two fiscal years. Usually, counties have to formally elect which payment option they want. This bill simplifies things dramatically: the payment election a county made for Fiscal Year 2023 will automatically carry over for 2024 and 2025 (Section 102). If you’re a county budget director, this is a huge administrative headache solved, freeing up time and resources.
Furthermore, the bill mandates that the Treasury Department must get the 2024 and 2025 payments out the door quickly—no later than 45 days after the law is enacted (Section 101(e)). This means faster, more predictable cash flow for rural communities, which is critical for planning and avoiding budget gaps. The bill does include some technical language about reducing the new SRS payment if a county already received a different type of federal land payment (like the “25-percent payment”) for those years, ensuring no double-dipping occurs.
Extended Authority and a Small Transparency Note
Beyond funding, the bill extends the life of the Resource Advisory Committees (RACs) through 2026. These committees are made up of local stakeholders who help decide how a portion of the SRS money is spent on local projects. This keeps the decision-making power closer to the communities affected. Interestingly, the bill deletes a previous requirement for reporting on the RAC pilot program (Section 2). While this is a minor technical change, it does mean one less specific report being generated about how that part of the program is operating.