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Lawmakers hear PILT report as counties and legislators raise concerns about lost tax base from state land acquisition
Summary
The Department of Revenue and DNR briefed the Senate Taxes Committee on Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT). Fiscal 2025 PILT payments totaled about $48.1 million; recent 2023 law increased some per-acre rates and created supplemental payments for counties with high shares of state land. Senators warned rising state land holdings and statutory rules
The Senate Taxes Committee on Jan. 16 received an update on Payments In Lieu of Taxes (PILT) from the Department of Revenue and the Department of Natural Resources and heard senators warn that rising state land ownership is eroding local tax bases.
Kirsten Larson, Strategic Land Asset Management supervisor at the DNR, and Kelly Yitzke of the Department of Revenue presented an overview of eligibility, classes of PILT land and recent legislative changes. Larson said state PILT covers fee‑title DNR lands, federal LUP (land utilization project) leases administered by the department, MnDOT transportation wetlands and the Camp Ripley game refuge administered by the Department of Military Affairs. The state owns roughly 5.6 million of Minnesota’s 55.6 million acres; ownership concentration is geographically uneven and highest in northern and northeastern counties.
Yitzke said fiscal 2025 PILT…
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