What is the School LAND Trust Program?
"Learning
And Nurturing Development” with Trust Land Dividends
The U.S. Congress, in exchange for not taxing federal land, gave lands to Utah schools at statehood. The lands are held in a legal trust for our schools. Schools own 3.3 million acres. The lands are managed by the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration and must, by law, be used to generate money for our schools. The money is put in a permanent savings account, which is never spent, but invested. The interest earned from the permanent fund now goes to each school in the state. Your school will get its share of the Trust Lands money because of a bill sponsored by Representative Mel Brown and Senator David Steele, which passed the 1999 Legislature and was signed by Governor Leavitt. Your education leaders in PTA, UEA, School Boards, the State Board of Education, as well as superintendents and principals, have worked diligently for decades to give this opportunity to you - use it wisely.
OTHER KEY FACTS:
1. School trust lands:
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are scattered all over Utah in a checkerboard pattern
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comprise 7% of land ownership in Utah (21% is privately owned
71% is federally owned and Native American reservations)
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generate revenue by renting surface lands and minerals and by selling the land are leased for:
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production of oil, gas, coal, and other minerals
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farming
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retail stores
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commercial buildings
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telecommunication sites
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ski resorts
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grazing for cattle and sheep
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hunting and fishing
2. The permanent State School Fund:
- is a large savings account for schools
- grows because all revenue from trust lands, after expenses, is deposited in it
- grows from wise investments
- is invested and never spent
- generates (from investments) earnings that support our schools
- gets bigger each year, providing more and more support for our schools
- will be $1 billion by 2010 if the Trust Lands Administration reaches its goal
3. School Trust Lands will never be given away, sold for less
than full value or used for any purpose except supporting our schools.