Dutchess County Aims for Savings with Smaller, Smarter, Shared Government Services

On July 17, the U.S. Senate Environment and Natural Resources Committee advanced the Small County PILT Parity Act (S. 1175). Led by Sens. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), this measure would amend the Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) formula to provide fairer program funding to counties with populations smaller than 5,000. 

Federal grant programs represent significant funding opportunities for counties, but technical jargon and limited staff capacity make them especially hard for small and rural counties to access.

On July 10, the U.S. Department of the Interior issued a final rule redefining “harm” for the purposes of administering the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The new definition would significantly narrow the scope of prohibited actions relating to listed species.