Congressional Bills S. 2283 AND S. 356 Signed into Law

The Secure Rural Schools and Community Self‑Determination Act of 2000 (Pub. L. 106‑393, codified at 16 U.S.C. ch. 90) is a federal law that created an alternative system of payments to rural counties that contain U.S. Forest Service or certain Bureau of Land Management ("O&C") lands. Timber receipts from these federal lands had fallen over time, reducing money counties received for roads and schools. The Act’s purposes are to (1) stabilize and supplement funding for public schools and roads in affected counties, and (2) fund projects that improve forest health, infrastructure, and community safety while promoting local collaboration.

Under the Act, eligible counties may elect to receive "Secure Rural Schools" (SRS) payments instead of older revenue‑sharing formulas. Payments are divided into three "Titles":

• Title I – goes mainly to counties for public schools and public roads.
• Title II – funds projects on federal lands (e.g., road/trail maintenance, forest restoration, fuels reduction), proposed by local Resource Advisory Committees.
• Title III – supports county projects such as emergency services, wildfire preparedness, and community wildfire protection plans. These payments have become a significant, predictable funding stream for more than 700 rural counties nationwide.

Before S. 356, the Secure Rural Schools program was only authorized through fiscal year (FY) 2023. The Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act of 2025 (S. 356) mainly makes time‑limited extensions and some transition fixes:

• Extends SRS payments through FY 2026. It amends section 101 and related sections of the 2000 Act by changing “2023” to “2026,” so secure payments to states and counties are authorized for FY 2024, 2025, and 2026 instead of ending after FY 2023.
• Special rules for FY 2024–2025. New subsection 101(e) says that if a county already received traditional 25‑percent (Forest Service) or 50‑percent (O&C) payments for FY 2024 or 2025, its SRS payment for that year is reduced by that amount, and the Treasury must send all SRS payments for FY 2024 and 2025 within 45 days of enactment. This is to quickly “top up” counties after the lapse in SRS authorization.
• Carries forward county elections. Amendments to section 102 provide that the payment choice and Title I/II/III allocation elections counties made for FY 2023 automatically apply to FY 2024 and FY 2025, and that counties do not make new elections for those two years.
• Extends project and spending authority. It pushes back the sunset dates for Title II "special projects" on federal land (section 208) and county authority to expend Title III funds (section 305) by three years—from 2025/2026 to 2028/2029—so counties and agencies have more time to initiate and obligate project funds.
• Extends Resource Advisory Committee flexibilities. It extends the membership "waiver" and a pilot program for Resource Advisory Committees to 2026, and makes small technical wording corrections in the 2000 Act.

Overall, S. 356 does not change the basic structure of SRS; it mainly restarts and extends the existing program, fixes issues caused by the lapse after FY 2023, and lengthens the time window to use SRS funds and operate local advisory committees.

The reauthorization through FY 2026 continues the existing Secure Rural Schools structure, so it affects the same types of places and programs as before:

• Counties: More than 700 counties in 41 states and Puerto Rico that contain National Forest System land (and some BLM "O&C" lands) and elect to receive SRS instead of the older 25‑ or 50‑percent revenue payments. These counties receive the payments and then pass funds on to local entities.
• Schools and roads (Title I): County governments use Title I funds primarily for public K‑12 school districts and county road departments serving areas with federal forest land.
• Federal‑land projects (Title II): Funds support specific projects on nearby federal lands—such as road and trail work, forest restoration, and wildfire‑risk reduction—recommended by local Resource Advisory Committees.
• County programs (Title III): Counties can use these funds for emergency services on federal lands, wildfire prevention and mitigation work, and community wildfire protection planning.

To see exactly which counties and how much each receives in a given year, one would consult the Forest Service’s annual Secure Rural Schools payment reports, which list all recipient counties and payment amounts.

For the U.S. federal government, a fiscal year runs from October 1 of one calendar year through September 30 of the next and is named for the year in which it ends (for example, FY 2026 runs from October 1, 2025, to September 30, 2026).

In the context of S. 356, saying that the Secure Rural Schools program is authorized "through fiscal year 2026" means:

• SRS payments are authorized for FY 2024, FY 2025, and FY 2026.
• Those fiscal years cover federal activities from October 1, 2023–September 30, 2026.
• The actual SRS checks for FY 2026 are typically issued in the following year (2027), and S. 356 also extends related project and spending authorities so SRS‑funded projects can be initiated up to the end of FY 2028 and funds obligated through the end of FY 2029.

Oscar J. Upham (1878–1949) was a U.S. Marine and long‑time Guthrie, Oklahoma mail carrier. As a private in the Marine Corps, he fought in the 1900 China Relief Expedition (the Boxer Rebellion) and was awarded the Medal of Honor on July 19, 1901, for "extraordinary heroism in action in the presence of the enemy at Peking, China, July 21 to August 17, 1900," where he helped erect barricades under heavy fire.

After his military service, Upham returned to Guthrie, where he worked as a postal mail carrier for more than three decades (about 34 years) until his retirement and became a well‑known local public servant. Lawmakers sponsoring the naming bill described him as exemplifying service "both on the battlefield and here at home," and Congress designated the Guthrie post office at 201 West Oklahoma Avenue as the "Oscar J. Upham Post Office" to honor both his Medal of Honor heroism and his long career serving the community through the postal service.

There are two ways a U.S. Postal Service (USPS) facility gets an honorary name, but the more visible route is through Congress:

1. USPS authority. By law, USPS itself has independent authority to name or designate its facilities. It generally uses geographic names for operational purposes.
2. Congressional designation (most honorary names).
   • A member of Congress (usually from the district where the facility is located) introduces a very short bill that specifies the exact USPS facility (by address) and the person or persons to be honored.
   • The bill is referred to the appropriate postal‑oversight committees, which apply informal policies (for example, that the honoree is deceased, has a strong local connection, and is noncontroversial).
   • If the bill is approved in committee, it is considered and passed by the House and Senate. Once both chambers pass identical text, it is sent to the President.
   • When the President signs the bill, it becomes law directing USPS to "designate" that facility with the honorary name.
   • USPS then implements the designation—typically by installing signage or a plaque and holding a dedication ceremony—while the facility’s operational address and geographic name remain the same.

This is the process that was used to name the Guthrie, Oklahoma post office after Oscar J. Upham.