A historic land exchange protecting Corona Arch and other scenic lands, along with $139 million in revenue, highlighted a near-record fiscal year for the Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA). Read the full annual report.
Our stewardship efforts rarely make headlines, but SITLA has helped protect lands equal in number to the acreage of Arches, Canyonlands, and Zion national parks combined, said SITLA Director Kevin S. Carter. While our fiduciary responsibility of generating revenue is our primary focus, transferring out of lands ill-suited for development benefits everyone, trust land beneficiaries and taxpayers.
Carter finalized the 60,000-acre Utah Recreational Land Exchange Act this past May with Governor Gary R. Herbert and Bureau of Land Management Director Juan Palma. This recent exchange helped the agency surpass 560,000 acres it has helped to protect or preserve since 1994.
The entirely self-funded agency also generated $138.9 million in revenue, just under its 2006 record of $140.7 million. SITLA’s Oil and Gas Group generated $93.5 million while the Mining, Surface, and Real Estate Development groups generated a combined $45.4 million.
All net revenue is deposited into the permanent funds of state institutions designated by Congress, and interest and dividends are distributed annually to those institutions.
As direct beneficiary of 96% of all trust lands, Utah’s K-12 students received a record $39.2 million in interest and dividends from Utah’s Permanent School Fund, which is expected to top $2 billion within the next few months.
Our Administration is proud to support Utah’s K-12 teachers, students, and taxpayers by filling the gap not met by taxpayer contributions to public education,” said Carter. Annual distributions will fund more than $20 million in teacher salaries, at no cost to taxpayers. Because it is a permanent endowment, annual distributions will continue in perpetuity.
On July 1 of this year, SITLA began its 20th year under its current business model. Over the past 19 years, SITLA has contributed $1.5 billion to public schools and the other beneficiaries of Utah’s trust lands:
Public schools – $1.4 billion
Miner’s Hospital at University of Utah Medical Center $45.7 million
Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind $21.4 million
University of Utah $16.6 million
Utah State University $6.6 million
Reservoirs, Division of Water Resources $10.8 million
Utah State Hospital $5.1 million
Teaching colleges at State Universities $5.6 million
School of Mines at the University of Utah $4.8 million
Juvenile Justice Services $1.4 million
Public buildings, Division of Facilities Construction and Management $4.5 million
