From PennEnvironment (http://www.pennenvironment.org):
As early as next week, the U.S. Senate will vote on a bill that would fully and permanently fund our country’s greatest conservation and recreation program.
This would reverse the Trump administration’s recent budget proposal to wipe out almost all funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). The president has since tweeted his support for a strong bill, and there’s growing momentum in Congress.1
LWCF funds thousands of amazing places across the country, from national treasures like the Grand Canyon and the Great Smoky Mountains to beloved local ballfields and parks.2
This is the best chance we’ve had to fully, permanently fund this critical program. Go to https://pennenvironment.webaction.org/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=36984 to tell Congress: Fund our public lands.
Last year, PennEnvironment helped save LWCF by convincing our legislators to permanently reauthorize it.3 But now — even though the program wasn’t destroyed — the Trump administration’s proposed budget would cut its funding by 97 percent.
With so little money appropriated for it, this amazing conservation program won’t be able to keep protecting the outdoor spaces we love.
The Land and Water Conservation Fund is supposed to receive $900 million each year.4 It’s up to Congress to make sure that money goes where it’s supposed to: To fund places like Valley Forge, Gettysburg, hiking trails and even local ballfields.5
But the budget process rarely gives LWCF that full amount. The program often ends up just half-funded, or much worse.6
If you’ve ever hiked in a national forest, picnicked in a local park, or visited incredible landmarks like the Grand Canyon or the Great Smoky Mountains, you’ve enjoyed a place funded by LWCF. That’s why the program has enjoyed bipartisan support for more than 50 years: The great outdoors are what make our nation special — and everyone should be able to agree that it’s worth protecting.
We know we can win because we’ve saved LWCF before.
For years, LWCF had to be reauthorized periodically — and eventually, Congress allowed the program to lapse completely.7
That’s where PennEnvironment and our national network stepped in. With the help of supporters like you, we collected and delivered thousands of petitions to lawmakers. Before long, we had built so much momentum that Congress could no longer ignore it — and LWCF was permanently reauthorized last year.
But reauthorization was just half the battle. An authorized but empty fund can’t provide any support to the amazing outdoor spaces we love. That’s why it’s so important that we urge Congress to fully, permanently fund LWCF.
Take action today to save our country’s best conservation and recreation program.
1. “Fiscal Year 2021: The Interior Budget in Brief,” U.S. Department of the Interior, last accessed February 10, 2020.
2. “Land and Water Conservation Fund,” U.S. Department of the Interior, last accessed February 4, 2020.
3. Holly Kays, “Congress votes to reauthorize Land and Water Conservation Fund,” The Smokey Mountain News, February 27, 2019.
4. Sarah Vogelsong, “Trump, Congress make Land and Water Conservation Fund permanent,” Bay Journal, April 8, 2019.
5. Jason Alcorn, “The List of Grants,” InvestigateWest, last accessed January 27, 2020.
6. Rob Chaney, “Trump signs lands bill but budget rejects money for Land and Water Conservation Fund,” Missoulian, March 12, 2019.
7. Holly Kays, “Congress votes to reauthorize Land and Water Conservation Fund,” The Smokey Mountain News, February 27, 2019.
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