Manchin Announces More Than $3.5 Million In PILT Payments To West Virginia

Washington, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), Chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee and member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced that West Virginia counties will receive $3,515,635 from the U.S. Department of Interior’s (DOI) Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program. These county payments are made annually for tax-exempt Federal lands administered by DOI agencies including the National Park Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and for lands administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s U.S. Forest Service.

 

“The importance of the PILT program in West Virginia cannot be overstated, and I am pleased to see that it is fully funded this year. West Virginia’s 1.1 million acres of public lands are a principle driver of our tourism economy, but we must ensure that local governments are provided with the necessary resources they need to help offset budget shortfalls related to their inability to collect taxes on Federal lands. PILT payments provide our communities with support for critical services, such as law enforcement, education, firefighting, and public health. As Chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee and a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I will continue to support this vital program and ensure that we invest back into our communities,” said Chairman Manchin.