Peace Garden News

The U.S. Department of the Interior has announced that North Dakota will receive $2,093,127 in Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) funding for 2025. These funds are meant to help offset the costs of maintaining essential community services in areas with tax-exempt federal lands.

PILT payments are determined by the number of acres of federal land within each county or jurisdiction and local population figures. The funds are provided for lands managed by various agencies under the Department of the Interior, including the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. They also apply to federal lands managed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

According to the announcement, “PILT payments are made for tax-exempt federal lands administered by DOI bureaus, including the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. In addition, PILT payments cover federal lands administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s U.S. Forest Service, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.”

Last year, North Dakota received nearly $2 million from PILT funding for counties affected by non-taxable federal land.