HomeMy WebLinkAboutDepartment of Interior Payment FY2008 THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
WASHINGTON
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June 11, 2008 BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
JUN 16 2008
OROVILLE,CALIFORNIA
Butte County BUM COUNTY-
Chairman Bd Supvs ADMMSTR-AnON
25 County Center Dr JUN 2 3 20
Oroville, CA 95965
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Dear County Commissioner:
I am pleased to notify you that on or about June 12, 2008,the Department of the Interior will
issue a payment to your county for Fiscal Year 2008 under the Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT)
Program. Nationwide,the Department will pay $228.5 million to compensate approximately
1,850 units of local government.
PILT payments help communities like yours to fund important services, including emergency
response,public schools,and roads. The PILT program supports productive relationships with
local communities and is a very important component of our partnership approach.
The payments are authorized by the Payments in Lieu of Taxes Act, 31 U.S.C. 6901-6907,as
amended. Fluctuations in county PILT payments occur from year to year as a result of changes
in the amount appropriated,the level of prior year revenue payments made to counties that are
deducted to compute the PILT payment, and the amount that a county receives under Sections
6904 and 6905 of the PILT Act. Sections 6904 and 6905 provide additional payments to
counties for lands added to the National Park System and the National Forest Wilderness areas.
Payment amounts, also change on an annual basis as a result of inflationary adjustments. The
PILT statute requires that the variables used to compute each county's payment, such as per acre
and population amounts,be adjusted for inflation annually in accordance with the Consumer,
Price Index and data supplied by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
We understand the need for payments to be made in a timely manner, and for the seventh
consecutive year,we are making payments in advance of the end of the counties' fiscal year,
June 30.
For Fiscal Year 2008,your county is entitled to a PILT payment of$30,323.00. If current bank
routing and account numbers for your county have been provided to our National Business
Center office,an electronic funds transfer(EFT)will post to your account on or about June 12,
2008. If this information has not been received,a check will be mailed to your county from the
U.S. Treasury in San Francisco on June 12,2008. Should you require further information,points
of contact are provided in the list of Frequently Asked Questions(FAQs)that accompanies this
letter.
PAYMENTS IN LIEU OF TAXES [PILT]
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS [FAQs]
Question: How are PILT payments computed?
Answer: General information concerning the methods used to compute PILT payments can be found in
the expanded FAQs section of the PILT website located at www.doi.gov/pilt . For more specific
information concerning how a particular unit of local government's payment was computed please call
Mr.Bill Howell,Office of the Secretary,Office of Budget,202-208-3157(Commercial or FTS). Persons
who utilize a telecommunications device for the deaf(TDD)can call the Federal Information Relay
Service at 1-800-877-8339, 24-hours a day, seven days a week,to contact Mr.Howell.
Question: The PILT Notification Letter stated the EFT payment due our county would be credited to
our account several days ago. How can I find out where our payment was sent?
OR
Our county is not enrolled in EFT,and expected to receive our PILT check several days ago. Who can
we talk to about this?
Answer: The phone number for the PILT Help Desk, at the National Business Center-Denver is
303-969-7722. The Help Desk can answer any inquiries concerning either EFT or check disbursement of
PILT payments.
Question: To expedite receipt of our PILT payment in the future,our county would like to enroll in the
EFT payment program. Where can we get a PILT Electronic Funds Transfer(EFT)Enrollment/Change
form?
Answer: - From the PILT Home Page at http://www.doi.gov/pilt,click on any line under the heading
PILT Menu;
Near the top of the screen,you'll see seven boxes,shaded in yellow. Click on the topic FAQ
[Frequently Asked Questions];
Click on Payment Method and ACH Enrollment Form,about 73 of the way down the list of subjects
immediately under the yellow topic boxes.
The third paragraph of the ACH Enrollment Form also lists the phone and fax numbers where
additional information and assistance is available.
Additional information about the PILI program is available a r PIL website loc d at
http://www.doi.gov/budget/pilt. Also included on the site i EFT e ollme ch ge form to
expedite receipt of PILI payments in the future.
DIRK KEWTHORNE
Enclosure