June 30, 2026 3:40 a.m.

On Monday, Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announce that counties throughout Oregon, including Douglas, will receive a combined total of just over $52 million in Payments in Lieu of Taxes for 2026.

A joint release said because local governments cannot tax federal lands, annual PILT funding helps to defray the costs associated with maintaining important community services in counties with federal lands.

Douglas County, with 1,444,878 acres of federal land, will receive the second highest amount of any county – getting $4,066,076.

Merkley serves as the Ranking Member of the Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee, which funds PILT. Merkley said, “Rural communities shouldn’t have to wonder if they will have the resources they need to pay for essential services and infrastructure”. Merkley said, “PILT funds schools, firefighters, law enforcement, and road construction – I’ll keep working to fully fund PILT so communities and families across Oregon have the resources they need to thrive”.

Wyden said, “At a time when local budgets throughout Oregon are tight, it’s more important than ever to provide these federal investments that support public education, public safety and transportation statewide”. Wyden said, “I’m glad these resources are heading to make our state an even better place to live and work, and I’ll keep battling both to protect and to strengthen this lifeline”.

The release said PILT compensates counties for tax-exempt federal lands administered by federal agencies, including the Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers. Payments are calculated based on the number of acres of federal lands in each county and the population of that county.