Last modified: Saturday, October 4, 2008 11:21 PM PDT People come and go as they do business at the Malheur County Courthouse Friday afternoon. While there was a lot of opposition to the financial bailout, there was a silver lining for Malheur County as full funding for payment in lieu of taxes the county receives was approved as part of the package. PILT is major revenue source for the county. Bailout propels county funding plan By Larry Meyer Argus Observer ONTARIO — Most Americans were focused on the $700 billion bailout for the distressed financial industry, but Malheur County and other counties in Oregon and Idaho are cheering from the passage of at least two of the provisions in the bill that will brighten their financial picture for at least the next four years. One of the measures added to the bill, which received final approval Friday, provides full funding for payment in lieu of taxes for four years. PILT is a major funding source for Malheur County’s general fund and is payment from the federal government on the land it owns in Malheur County, which is more than 70 percent of the county, in lieu of paying property taxes. “That’s a big issue for us,”  an elated Malheur County Commissioner Jim Nakano said.  He estimated the county could receive more than $2 million, instead  of the $1.2 to $1.3 million it has been receiving. His figure was supported by Janice Belnap, county administrator, who said “wonderful” when the news was confirmed to her, and echoed it would be good for the county. “That is good news,” Commissioner Louis Wettstein said. “Everybody who works for the county should be breathing a sigh of relief.” While he was not sure how much the county would be receiving, Wettstein said it would make things easier budget-wise. Judge Dan Joyce was out of town and not available for comment. In a statement released after the House vote of the bailout Friday, U.S. Rep. Greg Walden (R-Oregon) said, “While this measure is neither perfect nor politically popular, it is certainly better than what the Bush Administration originally sent to Congress. Gone is a blank check to the Treasury Department. “For rural Oregonians, we finally succeeded in reauthorizing and funding our county timber payments program for the next four years, and we fully fund payment in lieu of taxes through 2012,” he said. The county timber payments, a separate program from PILT, more formally known called the Secure Schools and Community Self-determination Act, go to counties that previously shared in federal harvest timber receipts. The original act had expired, and counties had begun to cut services, such as police and libraries. With timber-dependent counties getting their payments back, they will not be seeking their own PILT Funds, which was a fear of Malheur County officials. PILT payments are reduced or eliminated by the amount of other federal funds the counties may receive.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Colby Marshall, a field representative for Walden based in La Grande, said the full payments boost the PILT funds up to approximately $360 million, from $290 million. While the timber payments are targeted for schools and county roads, the PILT funds go right into a county’s general fund. It’s a good deal for Malheur County, he said. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, said earlier this week he still voted against the bill, despite the timber payment and PILT funding inclusion he pushed for, because of the short timeframe for its consideration. “In my judgment, the bill we are considering tonight leaves far too many questions unanswered,” Wyden said earlier this week. Wyden said the package helps large institutional investors who took foolish risks, fails to address regulatory lapses and does not provide assistance for homeowners struggling to make ends meet. Having his county payments legislation included in the bailout bill made his vote more difficult. “Oregon communities across the state can finally breathe a sigh of relief, and I want to thank the bipartisan cooperation of so many who made this possible,” Wyden said Friday after the House vote. “I promised I would attach my legislation to every bill moving in Congress until the job got done, and that’s what I did. I want the Oregon congressional delegation, the governor and all interested parties to use the next year to brainstorm on ways to address the long-term funding needs of our rural counties.”