Douglas County Commissioners Distribute $3.3 Million In Secure Rural Schools Funding To Local Districts

The Douglas County Board of Commissioners announced Thursday that more than $3.3 million in Secure Rural Schools funding will be distributed to 14 school districts across the county.

County officials said the distribution is required by law and follows the federal fiscal year 2026 reauthorization of the Secure Rural Schools program. The funding also includes supplemental allocations meant to offset the absence of Secure Rural Schools funding in 2025, when the program was not reauthorized by the federal government.

School districts are expected to receive the payments within the next week.

Projected district payments include:

• Elkton: $51,016.87
• Riddle: $88,954.56
• Camas Valley: $46,546.02
• Reedsport: $133,887.97
• South Umpqua: $351,148.39
• Winston-Dillard: $319,369.13
• Glide: $194,092.08
• Oakland: $172,965.33
• Roseburg: $1,352,214.77
• Glendale: $69,355.15
• North Douglas: $82,974.48
• Sutherlin: $321,444.32
• Yoncalla: $63,617.99
• Days Creek: $59,775.10

The total school district funding distribution is $3,307,362.16.

“We hope this funding supports our local schools in continuing to provide educational opportunities for our children. It is important to understand that this distribution of funding for schools is statutorily required by law. The SRS & Community Self-Determination Act of 2000 was instituted as a temporary replacement for historical timber receipts. Although SRS funding has been a critical lifeline, it has not solved the problem of our mismanaged federal forests. Your Douglas County Commissioners continue to work with the Federal land managing agencies locally, regionally and nationally to return to a reasonable and responsible timber resource management program. When federal forests and timberlands are managed correctly, it provides funding for critical services, jobs for our citizens, and creates healthy forests,” Commissioner Tim Freeman said.

According to the county, more than 700 counties in 40 states receive a portion of federal Secure Rural Schools funding to support county services, including money designated for local schools. County officials said the funding remains only a fraction of what timber receipts once provided.

Douglas County officials said more than half of the county’s 5,000 square miles are under federal control and management, primarily by the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management. Because the county does not receive property tax revenue from those lands, officials said Secure Rural Schools funding and timber receipts remain important revenue sources for services including the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, 911 Communications, Search and Rescue, Senior Services, Veteran Services, roads, bridges, and other infrastructure projects.

The county also pointed to ongoing work related to the Northwest Forest Plan, the fiscal year 2026 Congressional Interior Appropriations Bill, and the U.S. Department of the Interior’s February 2026 notice of intent to begin developing a revised Bureau of Land Management Resource Management Plan for 2.5 million acres of Oregon and California Revested Grant Lands in western Oregon.

County officials said the fiscal year 2026 Interior Appropriations Bill corrects revisions made in 1982 and returns Oregon and California counties to 75% of shared timber receipts from Oregon and California lands. The county said that change is expected to result in a 50% increase in the current revenue share for Oregon and California counties on an annual basis.

Because Secure Rural Schools funding and timber receipts make up a significant portion of Douglas County’s budget, county officials said commissioners continue to track issues affecting those payments. Their work includes communication with Oregon’s congressional delegation, other counties and states that receive federal funding, and organizations including the Association of O&C Counties, National Forest Counties and Schools Coalition, and the National Association of Counties.

The county said commissioners also provide testimony before Congress, meet with agency personnel, and monitor how revenue-sharing payments are calculated to ensure Douglas County receives the federal funding it is entitled to.