A past recipient of LWCF funds, Roosevelt National Forest in Colorado is named in honor of environmental advocate and U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt.
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In February, Land and Water Conservation Fund supporters got part of what they wanted: permanent reauthorization. In April, they’ve circled back for the missing part: the funding.
Senators Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) introduced Senate Bill 1081 to fully fund the LWCF. The funding source for the LWCF is a portion of revenue earned from offshore oil and gas leases.
Gardner and Manchin’s bill, the Land and Water Conservation Fund Permanent Funding Act, would create dedicated funding, removing the requirement for the appropriations exercise and siphoning of resources. The Permanent Funding Act would make $900 million available annually, lining up with the current authorized program level under the law.
“The Land and Water Conservation Fund is the crown jewel of conservation programs and now that we have successfully permanently authorized the program, the next step is to make the funding of the program automatic,” said Senator Gardner. “Colorado projects rely on LWCF funding, and fighting year after year about how much money to provide the program does not provide the long-term planning certainty our outdoor and conservation communities deserve.”
The LWCF was envisioned 55 years ago to acquire, develop, preserve and assure access to public lands and waters, for purposes of recreation and conservation. The monies have been used to pay for local, state and national parks, forests, fish and wildlife refuges, historic sites and safeguarding drinking water, supporting 9.4 million domestic jobs and contributing $1.06 trillion annually to the American economy.
A past recipient of LWCF funds, Bear Rocks Preserve in Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia.
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“The Land and Water Conservation Fund is responsible for the acquisition of some of West Virginia’s most treasured lands,” Senator Manchin said. “The Gauley River National Recreation Area, Monongahela National Forest and Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge were made possible because of LWCF funds.”
The reauthorization passed with overwhelming bipartisan support of the omnibus public lands package, the John D. Dingell Jr. Conservation, Management and Recreation Act: in the Senate, 92 to 8, and likewise in the House, 363 to 62.
Will broad, bipartisan momentum hold together to pass full, mandatory funding of LWCF in the Republican-led Senate? The work of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and debate will tell. There’s uncertainty in the Democrat-majority House, as well.