Washington, D.C.— Today, Congresswoman Julia Brownley (D-Westlake Village) announced Ventura County will receive more than $1.4 million from the U.S. Department of Interior through their 2014 Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program. This is an increase from the $1.3 million that Ventura County received in 2013 under this same program.
“Rural communities are important drivers of Ventura County’s diverse economy,” said Congresswoman Julia Brownley. “These investments will help Ventura County continue to provide the vital services – including firefighters and police, public school and road construction, and search and rescue operations – that make our community a great place to live and work.”
“We appreciate all the work that Congresswoman Brownley did in helping to secure additional PILT funding on behalf of the County,” said Ventura County Executive Officer Michael Powers. “This funding will support critical safety, social and health services for our community.”
Congresswoman Brownley has advocated throughout the FY2014 and FY2015 processes to ensure funding for this critical program.
Ventura County received a total of $1,473,281 in PILT funding for FY2014.
PILT program eligibility is reserved for local governments (mostly rural counties) that contain non-taxable federal lands and provide vital services, such as public safety, housing, social services and transportation. These jurisdictions provide significant support for national parks, wildlife refuges and recreation areas throughout the year. PILT seeks to compensate them for their support and foregoing tax revenue from these federal lands.
A full list of funding by state and county is available here: LINK.
Issues: 113th Congress, Jobs, Economy, and Small Business, Local Issues