The ramifications from the loss of $23 million annually in federal timber payments in Jackson County are visible on door signs at every library branch from Ashland to Prospect: The library will be closed as of April 6 due to a lack of funding.

But among Oregon public schools, the impact from the expiration of federal timber payments is less obvious because of the equalization formula in the state school funding system.

About $33 million will pour out of Oregon public schools if Congress does not extend the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self Determination Act, according to the Oregon Department of Education. About $1.3 million of that comes directly from Jackson County.

The likely result of the loss would be a decrease in per-pupil funding from the state unless state lawmakers choose to fill the hole, state finance officials said.

"I don't think most people understand there could be a loss in per-student funding," said Peggy Penland, a Medford School Board member.

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Also known as the rural county payments law, the act was passed in 2000 to offset shrinking timber harvests on federal lands, curtailed by environmental restrictions.

Counties with federal lands have depended on the federal timber payments to fund libraries, road construction and other operations.

U.S. Congressmen Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., and Greg Walden, R-Ore., recently submitted a bill that would reauthorize the act for seven years.

While the impact of stopping timber payments on each county would be unique depending on the amount of federal land each possessed, "the effect on schools is equalized over the state," said Steve Meyer, economist in the state Legislative Fiscal Office. "That reduces the allocation to each school district by a little bit, assuming the state doesn't increase the state school fund."

For example, in the Medford School District, the state subtracts about $579,000 in federal timber payments from the overall amount it gives the district. That's less than 1 percent of the district's operating budget.

Enrollment is the primary factor that dictates how much each district in the state receives. The Medford district receives about $5,400 per pupil.

Under Gov. Ted Kulongoski's proposed budget, school funding would increase from $5.3 billion in the 2005-07 biennium to nearly $6.1 billion in the 2007-09 biennium. But those numbers exclude any revenue from federal timber payments.

Under the proposal, per-pupil funding would increase even if federal timber payments are lost, said Jake Weigler, a spokesman for Kulongoski.

"I'm not sure scrapping the timber payments will have any impact," said Wendy Fullerton, clerk of the Pinehurst School District of about 25 pupils.

Reach reporter Paris Achen by calling 541-776-4459 or pachen@mailtribune.com.