Colorado’s U.S. Sens. Michael Bennet and Cory Gardner are urging Senate leaders to reauthorize the Secure Rural Schools program by the year’s end to avoid cuts in funding to rural public schools.

The Secure Rural Schools program, which expired in 2015, supports public schools, public roads, forest health projects, emergency services and other essential county services throughout the country. Bennet has introduced legislation to restore that funding for schools in 43 Colorado counties.

Last year Colorado received $11.8 million in SRS funding from 2015 revenues, Bennet’s office reports.

Without the program’s funding in 2016, Colorado counties saw an average 52 percent decrease in payments – a loss of $6.2 million dollars for essential services and schools in rural counties, Bennet says.

“The SRS program continues to be a critical safety-net for forest counties as we work to diversify rural economies, improve forest management and forest health, strengthen historic forest revenue sharing with local governments, and ensure that our forests provide a range of values such as clean water, jobs, and wood fiber for local economies,” Bennet and other senators wrote in a letter to Sen. Mitch McConnell and Charles Schumer.

“In the interest of working together in a bipartisan way to support local rural communities, we ask that you include a reauthorization of Secure Rural Schools in any end-of-the-year legislation. We appreciate your assistance with this matter.”

A total of 35 senators signed the letter; a copy of the letter is available here.