By a voice vote, the House approved an amendment to increase the funding by $22 million to a total of $255 million nationwide. It's still short of the full funding the delegation has asked for.

Last year, Utah received about $20 million in PILT funding and with the House amendment it will likely receive the same, the delegation said.

Reps. Rob Bishop, Chris Cannon and Jim Matheson co-sponsored the amendment to increase the funding and all said the boost in payments in lieu of taxes will lessen the burden on local governments in rural counties. PILT, as the payments are dubbed, help counties pay for services such as police and medical and search and rescue operations.

"When a majority of their lands are locked away, our counties struggle to produce enough revenue just to survive and provide essential services," Bishop said in a statement. "PILT is simply a small effort to right this huge wrong."

Cannon added that Utah has one of the highest percentages of federal land and "these funds are essential" for counties to function.

Matheson said: "At a time when local budgets are stretched so thin, it's imperative that we maintain our commitment."

tburr@sltrib.com