Proposed Changes to the Payment in Lieu of Taxes Program Can Save Millions

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO analyzed the budgeting impact of four proposals amending the Payment in Lieu of Taxes Program (PILT). The four proposals would: (1) set a maximum payment to each county of $500,000; (2) deduct from a State's PILT payment all Federal payments made under acts listed in the PILT law; (3) amend the section governing deductions to include payments generated from Federal lands under the acts and have all other Federal payments deducted from PILT payments; and (4) substitute a $.10 per acre payment, as an alternative payment method for PILT payments.