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Show Government to pay money to compensate local entities CEDAR CITY - The U.S. Government will pay $95 million to 1,687 units of local government to partially compensate for federal lands within their boundaries that were tax-exempt tax-exempt during fiscal year 1982. Utah's share of the money will amount to over $7.9 million, third highest payment in the nation. Payments in the live county area will be as follows: Beaver County, $198,113; Garfield Gar-field County, $168,774; Iron County, $426420; Kane County, $184,903 ana wasnington county, $573,355. The Interior Department's Depart-ment's Bureau of Land Management is distributing payments to counties starting Sept. 27. BLM Director Robert F. Burford said there are "No strings attached to the money by Washington. "These payments help compensate local governments for police protection and other services they provide to more than 455 million acres of federally owned lands not subiect to state or local taxes," Burford said. "As a good neighbor, neigh-bor, it is appropriate that the federal government provide some measure of financial assistance to these local governments tomitigate the fiscal impact resulting from the presence of tax-exempt federal lands within their boundaries." Commonly referred to as "payments in lieu of taxes," these annual payments are authorized by federal legislation approved in 1976. They supplement revenues the Federal Government regularly shares, with State and local governments govern-ments from the sale of minerals, timber, and other materials removed from the public lands. Local governments receive in-lieu payments lor tax-exempt Federal lands such as those in the National Forest System, the National Park System, lands administered ad-ministered by BLM and lands used for federal water resource development projects. |