December 10, 2025 4:00 a.m. 

Late Tuesday afternoon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, and Representatives Val Hoyle and Cliff Bentz, applauded the House passage of a bipartisan bill reauthorizing the Secure Rural Schools Program.

Wyden said, “The Secure Rural Schools program has been a lifeline for rural communities across Oregon since I originally authored the program back in 2000”. Wyden said, “I’m relieved the House has finally done its job with the long-overdue passage of my bill to return the safety net for critical services to communities that need it the most. This is exactly why we need a permanent solution to get rural communities off the financial rollercoaster and ensure they have the resources they need to not only survive but grow and thrive”.

Merkley said, “Extending the SRS program ensures Oregon communities and local governments can maintain access to these important lifelines and resources, and I look forward to President Trump swiftly signing our bill into law”.

During remarks on the House floor on Tuesday, Hoyle emphasized why she believes rural communities need this support. Hoyle said, “When the timber industry collapsed, Congress made a commitment to support rural communities and their critical infrastructure to make sure they did not get left behind”. Hoyle said, “The Secure Rural Schools program, SRS, has been a lifeline”.

In Fiscal Year 2023, the last time SRS was authorized, counties in Oregon’s Fourth Congressional District received over $31.5 million through the program.

Ahead of Tuesday afternoon’s vote in the House, Bentz said, “When society enacts socially attractive laws that seemingly benefit the broader public but end up harming small communities, society must mitigate that harm. This is what the SRS bill does. It mitigates at least a part of the billions in damage done to small communities by the implementation of social goals, such as in this case, the Endangered Species Act”. Bentz said, “I thank my colleagues and Speaker Johnson for supporting this essential bill and the funding that my counties so desperately need”.