Press Releases

Washington, D.C.—Today, Congressional Western Caucus Chairman Doug LaMalfa (CA-01) led the effort in the House of Representatives to pass the Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act of 2025, which reauthorizes Secure Rural Schools (SRS) payments to rural counties in Northern California and across the country. This legislation passed by a vote of 399 to 5 and is the first time in recent history that legislation reauthorizing this program passed as a standalone bill.

The SRS program was last reauthorized in 2021 and expired in Fiscal Year 2023 with the last set of payments going out in 2024. Counties have already missed critical payments this year, and future payments were in jeopardy with the program expired. Chairman LaMalfa introduced legislation to reauthorize SRS payments in the House, and worked with the Speaker and Majority Leader since the beginning of the year to bring a SRS bill to the House floor for a vote.

“For rural counties, Secure Rural Schools funding is essential,” said Chairman LaMalfa. “These payments help keep schools open, keep roads maintained, and help ensure sheriff, fire, and emergency services remain in place when federal timber revenues fall short. When the program lapsed, rural schools and counties were cut short of the funding they rely on to provide basic services. This bill restores that funding and keeps future payments on schedule. What we actually need is to rebuild a strong timber economy so these areas can rely on real revenue again.”

Since its enactment, the SRS program has provided $7 billion in payments to more than 700 counties and 4,400 school districts across 40 states.

In 2024, California received $33.7 million in SRS payments. However, when the program lapsed, payments reverted to a different formula, and most counties saw an 80% reduction in funding. This resulted in teachers being laid off, schools forced to make cuts, and roads left unrepaired.

The Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act restores the missed 2024 payment and authorizes payments for 2025 and 2026. Once this bill is signed into law and SRS payments are made, rural counties and schools should be able to restart programs and rehire teachers and staff.

You can view Chairman LaMalfa leading debate on the House floor here.

The table below shows the payments received by states in 2024 before the program lapsed. 
 

State	Payment Amount
Alabama	$1,643,523
Alaska	$10,314,755
Arizona	$8,869,762
Arkansas	$5,400,021
California	$33,720,305
Colorado	$12,574,121
Florida	$2,223,095
Georgia	$1,170,257
Idaho	$21,552,395
Illinois	$549,818
Indiana	$221,350
Kentucky	$1,352,826
Louisiana	$1,571,793
Maine	$61,140
Michigan	$3,448,901
Minnesota	$2,243,841
Mississippi	$4,614,710
Missouri	$2,639,657
Montana	$13,396,642
Nebraska	$176,796
Nevada	$4,149,561
New Hampshire	$447,052
New Mexico	$9,309,362
New York	$19,091
North Carolina	$1,469,497
North Dakota	$251
Ohio	$228,088
Oklahoma	$764,330
Oregon	$47,782,384
Pennsylvania	$3,135,476
Puerto Rico	$171,857
South Carolina	$1,458,678
South Dakota	$1,122,288
Tennessee	$1,035,900
Texas	$1,800,075
Utah	$7,287,609
Vermont	$299,856
Virginia	$1,385,662
Washington	$15,181,392
West Virginia	$1,486,097
Wisconsin	$1,674,092
Wyoming	$4,461,02
TOTAL:	$232,415,330