Today, Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (WA-03) sent a letter urging House Leadership to prioritize a three-year extension of the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) program to ensure rural communities can continue to access vital funds for infrastructure and schools. In order for the program to stay on schedule, reauthorization needs to be completed by the end of the calendar year.
The SRS program is a historically bipartisan lifeline for rural communities that used to rely on timber revenue and are highly impacted by federal lands. In Skamania County, only 1.8 percent of land can generate revenue for community services, and SRS funding accounts for 5.1 percent of the county’s budget. The county will have to make significant cuts if the funding isn’t received and has already laid off staff and combined schools to try to save money.
Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez cosponsored bipartisan legislation to reauthorize the program and led a bipartisan amendment to include reauthorization in annual defense legislation. She has been working to build support for the effort among her colleagues on both sides of the aisle.
“Where your kids live shouldn’t determine the quality of education they receive – but in communities like mine, where funding for public services is tied to natural resources like timber, interminable litigation and critical wildlife conservation have jeopardized our ability to adequately fund basic services,” said Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez. “The Secure Rural Schools program is an investment in the equality of our children’s opportunities, and I refuse to allow federal inaction to undermine it. Rural schools are already enduring painful cuts – and schools in Southwest Washington have had to consider difficult choices in the face of the program expiring, including cutting down to a four-day school week.”
Full text of Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez’s letter can be found here.