OAK HARBOR—The Oak Harbor School District received a $318,000 federal payment this week thanks to legislation authored by Rep. Rick Larsen, WA-02. The Impact Aid payment, which helps schools that serve large numbers of military families or Indian families, arrived a year earlier than expected because of a provision Larsen successfully included in last year’s National Defense Authorization Act.

“Impact Aid is a lifeline for schools here in Oak Harbor and throughout Northwest Washington,” Larsen said. “Schools have for too long been left in the dark about when they would receive these federal dollars that let them keep teachers in their classrooms. This speedy payment will let Oak Harbor schools plan their budgets and make sure kids are getting the best opportunities.”

Oak Harbor School District Superintendent Rick Schulte announced the payment with Larsen during a discussion about new legislation Larsen is drafting to further improve the Impact Aid program. Larsen and Schulte met with parents, teachers and other community leaders at Olympic View Elementary School where about three in four students come from military families.

Impact Aid provides funding to compensate school districts that lose tax revenue due to a large concentration of federally-owned land, including school districts with military bases. But payments are often delayed, leaving school districts with budget shortfalls. The Impact Aid Timely Repayment Act relieves those pressures by requiring the federal government to pay school districts what they owe within three years.

For more information on the Impact Aid program, visit https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oese/impactaid/index.html.