Total trust assets reported by the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration surpassed the half-billion dollar mark at the end of January 2004.

"A half-billion dollars in total trust assets is a significant benchmark in reaching our goal of a billion dollars by 2010," says Trust Lands Board of Trustees Chairman, John W. Creer. "When this agency was formed in July 1994, there were roughly $94 million in assets. The half-billion dollar mark is an amazing increase of five times in less than 10 years!"

"In fiscal year 1993, trust land revenues barely reached nine million dollars. In fiscal year 2003 revenues were more than $40 million - which is near the average of the past several years," according to Creer.

Several factors have contributed to the current results:

1. A constitutional amendment making the permanent state school fund inviolate
2. The state legislature creating the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration to manage trust lands using modern business principles
3. The agency taking a pro-active, fair-market approach in managing trust assets
4. Successful land exchanges with the United States
5. A management bonus program which rewards trust land employees for exceptional performance. The bonuses are based on both financial and non-financial objectives. The Board of Trustees establishes and monitors the progress of reaching new and different goals each year.

The permanent funds of public schools and the other 11 trust beneficiaries are more than 90 percent of the total trust assets. In the case of the public schools, distributions to individual schools come from the earnings of their permanent fund. As total trust assets increase, the distributions to schools become more and more significant.

The School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration is an independent state agency which manages 3.5 million acres of Utah trust lands exclusively for the benefit of Utah's schools and 11 other public institutions.

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