Gluesenkamp Perez Joins Bipartisan Effort to Introduce Bill to Extend Lifeline for Rural Schools
Today, Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (WA-03) joined a group of her bipartisan colleagues to introduce the Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act, to extend the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) program to ensure rural communities can continue to access vital funds for infrastructure and schools, including Reps. Doug LaMalfa (CA-01) and Joe Neguse (CO-02).
The legislation would reauthorize SRS funds through FY2026, ensuring continued support for rural counties across Southwest Washington and the country that rely on this funding for schools, road maintenance, and emergency services. According to the Forest Service, reauthorization needed to have been completed by the end of January in order for the program to stay on schedule without delays to payments.
In January, Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez urged House Leadership to immediately prioritize an SRS extension, following a September letter urging reauthorization before the end of 2023.
The SRS program is a historically bipartisan lifeline for rural communities who rely on timber revenue that has been limited by federal action and are highly impacted by tax-exempt federal lands. In Skamania County, only 1.8 percent of land can generate revenue for public services, and SRS funding accounts for 5.1 percent of the county’s budget. The school district will have to make drastic cuts if SRS funding isn’t received and has already laid off staff and combined schools to try to save money, even with SRS funding.
Since its enactment, SRS has provided $7 billion in payments to more than 700 counties and 4,400 school districts across 40 states. In 2023, Cowlitz, Lewis, and Skamania Counties received significant amounts of funding through SRS.
“In rural communities like mine, blows to our timber economy have resulted in a loss of jobs, wealth, and people – but our Zip Code shouldn’t affect access to education for those who stay and hold the line out of love for their land, neighbors, and heritage. Across rural Southwest Washington, funding for public services is tied to our natural resources, and the Secure Rural Schools program has allowed us to address budget shortfalls as we have historically been prevented from generating timber revenue ourselves,” said Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez. “While Washington, D.C. experiences an atrophy of awareness of what it’s like to live in rural America, this vital program is now running behind schedule. Our rural schools and counties have already faced decades of painful cuts to the basics, consolidating schools and considering four-day school weeks. Failing to reauthorize SRS would result in devastating losses of jobs, schools, and trades programs and hinder basic maintenance on our aging schools and roads. These impacts would be most acute in communities with large amounts of federal land, like Skamania County. I refuse to let federal inaction undermine rural opportunities for our kids – so I’ll continue to build bipartisan support for this critical legislation.”
“The Stevenson-Carson School District serves over 700 students in a rural community that relies heavily on Secure Rural Schools (SRS) funding. Our tax base is significantly limited by the federal lands within our boundary, and losing these monies will drastically impact the education of our learners. If we do not receive funding this year, we lose the dollars that pay for the equivalent of 5 teachers or 17 classified positions. The school year is nearly half over, and we cannot legally reduce teaching staff at this point in the year. This means essential services and personnel will be cut, and what can’t be cut will come from our very limited funds for facility repair. There will be no money left at that point to maintain our very old buildings. Schools have already been combined, staff already eliminated,” said Dr. Ingrid L. Colvard, Superintendent of the Stevenson-Carson School District. “For the upcoming 2025-2026 school year, our school district will need to cut $500,000 to $900,000 from the budget based on declining enrollment alone. This is overwhelming considering what we have already cut, and not receiving SRS funds will add an additional $800,000 to that amount. Our children deserve an education that provides what they need to prepare for their futures. They deserve enough adult staff to safely supervise them at school. We are careful stewards of funds, but our students should not suffer because their community includes a significant amount of federal land. I hope they are not forgotten in the midst of all that is happening politically. Time is running out and we need immediate help so we do not have to make choices that seriously impact learning and safety.”
“The Secure Rural Schools (SRS) funding is absolutely vital for the safety and growth of Lewis County,” said Lewis County Commissioner Scott Brummer. “With more than 1,200 miles of rural roadway to maintain, we rely on SRS funding to support critical infrastructure work, from chip-seal and pavement repairs to essential road services. Unfortunately, the dramatic decline in funding – from $2.2 million in 2006 to less than $700,000 in 2023 – has left us struggling to meet even our most basic maintenance goals. Each $1 million in funding allows us to repair 30 miles of road, but without adequate resources, we’re forced to delay or abandon projects, leading to more costly repairs down the line. We urge Congress to prioritize a long-term legislative solution to ensure continued revenue-sharing for rural counties and schools that depend on this funding for their survival.”
“SRS funds help support unique and important program efforts in rural Skamania County. Forest Youth Success (FYS) is one of them. FYS is an award-winning program that holds enormous community value as it has provided employment opportunities for hundreds of local teens for the last 22 years. As a workforce development program operated in partnership with WSU Extension, the Stevenson Carson School District, and the U.S. Forest Service, FYS hires and trains teens to provide support to agencies like the Forest Service with trail maintenance and land management projects. Participants get the added benefit of receiving training in important life and job skills as well as education around Natural Resource Management and Forestry. Partners of the program benefit as the youth crews complete work that their agencies otherwise would not have had the capacity to address,” said Hannah Brause, Director of WSU Extension in Skamania County. “With the support of SRS funds, the Gifford Pinchot National Forest, a variety of community partners, and the youth of Skamania County all benefit in tangible and valuable ways.”
“In 1990, Skamania County received $10 million dollars from the active management of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest (today’s equivalent is $22.4 million) That was 25 percent of the revenue they produced. These funds were split between the schools and the county. By 2001, that amount dropped to near zero and SRS was put in place to make up some of the loss. But it too has been continually reduced. In the last SRS package, we each received about $1.1 million. The reauthorization of these funds is critical to the schools and the county,” said former Skamania County Commissioner Tom Lannen (District 2). “Staff reduction is the primary tool to offset these losses. The county has lost over 90 positions (36 percent) in the last decade as a result of inflation, skyrocketing costs, and ever-increasing government mandates. Schools have been even more impacted.
“I am very concerned that Secure Rural Schools (SRS) has not yet been passed. As a small, 72-student school in western Skamania County, we depend on SRS funds to remain open. If we were to close, our taxpayers would become part of the Washougal School District, paying significantly higher taxes,” said Liz Wilber, member of the Mt. Pleasant School Board. “As a school board, we have worked hard to be fiscally responsible, earning a perfect score in the state for our fiscal health. Please do all you can to encourage your fellow representatives to pass this important funding source.”
“For rural counties, including those in my own district, Secure Rural Schools funding is essential. This program ensures that schools stay open, roads are maintained, and emergency services are available, even when federal timber revenues fall short,” said Rep. LaMalfa. “In 2024 alone, California received $33.7 million through this program—funding that helps keep classrooms running and supports vital services like public safety and infrastructure. These funds replace the lost timber tax receipts that local governments once relied on. Without this funding, rural areas would struggle to provide even the most basic services. This bill ensures these counties have the resources they need for now, but we should be working to restore the timber industry so that these areas can actually provide revenue instead of relying on stopgap programs like SRS.”
“The Secure Rural Schools program is a vital lifeline for folks in our rural and mountain communities. It unlocks funding for students and schools, wildfire mitigation initiatives, emergency search and rescue services, road maintenance, and more,” said Rep. Neguse. “I’m proud to co-lead this critical bill and will continue to advocate for the needs of folks across Colorado’s Western Slope.”
“Without reauthorization of the Secure Rural Schools Program, many local education agencies may miss future payments, through no fault of their own,” said Rep. Thompson. “This bipartisan coalition of members representing forested counties across the country shows the real appetite to get this done as soon as possible.”
“The Secure Rural Schools program has provided critical revenue for schools, public safety, wildfire mitigation, and road maintenance for rural communities in my district for decades. It’s essential this program continues, and I am proud to join in reintroducing this legislation,” said Rep. Hoyle. “We should not leave Southwest Oregon’s communities without this lifeline.”
“The Secure Rural Schools program provides essential funding to Oregon counties that are dependent upon Federal forests—ensuring their ability to provide critical services. These services include infrastructure maintenance, wildfire mitigation, conservation projects, search and rescue operations, fire prevention initiatives, and, most importantly money for children’s education,” said Rep. Bentz. “This funding will support classrooms, expand opportunities for outdoor education, help retain and hire teachers, and equip students with hands-on learning resources. Without it, schools and communities will not be able to maintain these critical programs.”
“The Secure Rural Schools Act is essential legislation for communities across Montana,” said Rep. Zinke. “The funds from this program go directly to schools and roads in counties that have revenue cut off by federal land holdings, logging communities in forested areas are especially affected. Let’s get this across the finish line and get money into the hands of people that need it.”
Full text of the legislation is available here.
Reps. Glenn “GT” Thompson (PA-15), Val Hoyle (OR-04), and Cliff Bentz (OR-02) are also original cosponsors of this legislation.
Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez previously cosponsored the legislation in the 118th Congress and led a bipartisan amendment to include reauthorization in annual defense legislation.