Advocacy, Congressional, and LWCF Updates

A Busy Time on Capitol Hill (3/29/21)

It is a busy time on Capitol Hill. A  FY22 “skinny” budget is expected this week and the President Biden’s FY22 budget is expected in May or June 2021. The ‘skinny’ budget should provide Congress with information about the President’s discretionary funding priorities.

On March 16, 2021, Deb Haaland took the oath of office to become the 54th secretary of the Department of the Interior. Last week, the nomination of Elizabeth Klein to become the Interior Department’s deputy secretary was withdrawn. Other nominees are being vetted but a new nominee has yet to be announced. 

Several bills that would impact National Trails are making their ways through Congress. H.R.803 – Protecting America’s Wilderness and Public Lands Act passed the House and has been referred to the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. In addition to providing for the preservation, conservation, and recreational use of public lands in several states and territories, it calls for designation of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail as a unit of the National Park System and for the establishment of an outdoor recreation legacy partnership grant program. In previous years, PNTS has supported the unsuccessful National Scenic Trails Parity Act (S.1027 — 116th Congress) that would have required the Ice Age, North Country, and New England national scenic trails to be administered as units of the National Park System. While PNTS is pleased to see the inclusion of unit status for the Ice Age National Scenic Trail in this bill, we continue to support parity for Ice Age, North Country, and New England national scenic trails. 

H.R. 1162 – 21st Century Conservation Corps Act would make supplemental appropriations for U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Department of Interior for the management of land and resources and funding for programs including Every Kid Outdoors, Forest Service Legacy Roads and Trails Remediation Program, as well as the establishment of a 21st Century Civilian Conservation Corps program. The 21st Century Civilian Conservation Corps program would make grants to eligible youth or conservation corps, acting in partnership with project partners, to carry out Civilian Conservation Corps projects.

H.R.463 – Transportation Alternatives Enhancements Act, would improve the transportation alternatives program and would serve other purposes including providing funds for the Recreational Trails Program.

Colorado Outdoor Recreation and Economy Act (H.R 577 and S.173) would protect over 400,000 acres of public lands, waterways, and outdoor recreation opportunities in Colorado, including some of the Continental Divide’s most stunning landscapes.

The Grand Canyon Protection Act (H.R.1052 and S.387) passed the U.S House of Representatives and was introduced to the Senate in February 2021. It would protect over 1 million acres surrounding Grand Canyon National Park, including parts of the Arizona National Scenic Trail, from new uranium mining by making permanent an existing but temporary 20-year moratorium on mining for the Canyon’s north and south rims.  

Bills have been introduced that would designate new National Trails. H.R.973 – Central Coast Heritage Protection Act would designate a Condor National Scenic Trail, a trail extending approximately 400 miles from Lake Piru in the southern portion of the Los Padres National Forest to the Bottchers Gap Campground in the northern portion of the Los Padres National Forest. If passed, the bill would require the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct a feasibility study within three years of the date of enactment. H.R.810 – To amend the National Trails System Act to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study on the feasibility of designating the Chief Standing Bear National Historic Trail, and for other purposes. This legislation would direct the Department of the Interior to conduct a study on feasibility of designating as a national historic trail the Chief Standing Bear Trail that extends 550 miles from Niobrara, Nebraska, to Ponca City, Oklahoma, which follows the route taken by Chief Standing Bear and the Ponca people during their forced removal, and 550 miles from Ponca City through Omaha to Niobrara, Nebraska, which follows the return route taken by Chief Standing Bear and the Ponca people.

ACTION ALERT

A letter focused on the Transit to Trails Act is available to share with Representatives if you wish to  demonstrate widespread support for this legislation.

 

Nomination Hearings for the Biden-Harris Administration and Updates from the Department of Interior (2/26/21)

 

  • Department of Interior issued Secretarial Order 3396 that revoked Secretarial Order 3388 and the last-minute, damaging changes it had made to LWCF. Thank you to all PNTS members and partners who contacted their representatives to encourage them to sign on to a Dear Colleague letter that called for the repeal of Secretarial Order 3388.
  • Nomination hearings continue as the Biden-Harris administration works to fill appointed positions. Click here for the up-to-date schedule of hearings. Key updates include:
  • Tom Vilsak was confirmed as Secretary of Agriculture on February 2, 2021
  • Rep. Deb Haaland is expected to be confirmed as Secretary of the Interior soon following a nomination hearing on February 23, 2021.

Click here to see the questions submitted to Congressional offices by PNTS members, American Hiking Society and others to ask during the confirmation hearing for the Secretary of Agriculture nominee.

  • National Park Service issued interim guidance for filming in parks. Under the guidance, low-impact filming will be exempt from advance notice and permit requirements, while other filming activities may need a permit to address potential impacts to resources and the visitor experience. Until further guidance is issued, the NPS will not require location fees, application fees or additional cost-recovery charges. Learn more here.
  • Following Executive Order – Protecting the Federal Workforce and Requiring Mask-wearingNPS published an article with information about their guidance for wearing masks on public lands. NPS recommends visitors check the websites for individual parks or trails for specific guidance.

The Biden-Harris Administration’s Key Administrative Priorities and Recent Executive Orders (1/29/21)

The Partnership and several of its members and partners took advantage of opportunities to meet with Biden-Harris Administration transition teams. The Partnership submitted a letter to the transition teams for the Departments of Agriculture and Interior that outlined connections between the National Trails System and key administrative priorities and made recommendations related to National Historic and Scenic Trails.

On January 19, 2021, U.S. Secretary of the Interior David L. Bernhardt announced an increase in LWCF that provides $302 million for outdoor recreation and conservation projects in all 50 states, five U.S. territories and the District of Columbia.  An additional $150 million will be allocated through a competitive process for a total of at least $452 million.

Among his final actions as Secretary of Interior, Bernhardt issued Sec. Order 3388 that announced changes to the structure and purpose of LWCF that included delegating the authority given under the State Program that allowed states to choose their priorities to the National Park Service, and eliminating the Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership program (ORLP) which Congress had expanded in order to steer more LWCF funding to underserved communities in densely populated areas. The changes are inconsistent with Congressional direction related to the Great American Outdoors Act and the FY21 Appropriations law passed in December 2020 (See press release from the LWCF Coalition and letter requesting the reinstatement of ORLP).

Recent Executive Orders

The Biden-Harris administration has issued several Executive Orders of interest to the National Trails System advocates in its first days in office.

In addition to the key Day 1 action of directing the U.S. to rejoin the Paris Agreement, the Biden-Harris Administration demonstrated its commitment addressing the climate crisis:

  • Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad provides direction for the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Commerce, through the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality to submit reports within 90 days recommending steps the U.S. should take to encourage broad participation in the goal of conserving 30 percent of our lands and waters by 2030 (i.e. 30X30). 30X30 goals are likely to rely heavily on LWCF, that is commonly used to fund for public land acquisition, and aligns with the Partnership’s mission to further the protection, completion, and stewardship of the 30 national scenic and historic trails within the National Trails System.
  • Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis directs agencies to conduct immediate review of harmful rollbacks of standards. It identifies the revocation of several Executive Orders that protect our air, water, and communities, as well as the March 2019 Permit for the Keystone XL Pipeline, and it orders steps to be taken to restore National Monument boundaries and conditions as they existed in January 2017 and places a moritorium on Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge pending analysis of environmental impact.
  • A January 27, 2021 Fact Sheet issued by the White House provides greater detail of the Administration’s approach to “tackling the climate crisis at home and abroad while creating good-paying union jobs and equitable clean energy future, building modern and sustainable infrastructure, restoring scientific integrity and evidence-based policymaking across the federal government, and re-establishing the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

Other key Executive Orders and actions with impact on National Trails include:

COVID Relief Package and Omnibus Appropriations Bill Signed into Law (12/30/20)

On a 359-53 vote in the House and a 92-6 vote in the Senate, Congress passed a  $1.4 trillion government funding package and a $900 billion COVID-relief package that secures federal agency operations through September 2021 and provides pandemic aid to Americans. The President signed the measure into law on Dec. 27. 

A primary highlight is the first-ever full funding of $900 million for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) as required by the Great American Outdoors Act. Of this, $405 million is for federal land acquisitions and $495 million for financial assistance to states grants programs and other non-federal programs. 

Overall agencies that administer National Trails received appropriations that were above the President’s budget requests, though some agencies were funded below the FY 2020 enacted level

  • $1.27 billion for the Bureau of Land Management, $28 million below the enacted level and $90 million above the President’s budget request.
  • $3.12 billion for National Park Service, $44 million below the fiscal year 2020 enacted level and $332 million above the President’s budget request. 
  • $1.58 billion for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, $22 million above the fiscal year 2020 enacted level and $205 million above the President’s budget request. 
  • $3.46 billion for the Forest Service (non-fire), an increase of $324 million above the 2020 enacted level and $527 million above the President’s budget request. After adjusting for LWCF and a restructure of the Forest Service budget, this is a programmatic increase of $77.9 million.

More information about the spending package, including bill text and detailed explanations are available on the websites for both the House and the Senate Committees on Appropriations.

PNTS Submits Comments to Senate Subcommittee Regarding S.1695 (11/30/2020)

  • S.1695 – PNTS Trails Coalition Opposition: The Partnership for the National Trails System and other conservation groups submitted comments on November 17th to the Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests & Mining – Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee in strong opposition to “Human-Powered Travel in Wilderness Areas Act.” S.1695, by Senator Mike Lee of Utah, would allow mountain bikes in designated wilderness and would weaken wilderness protections. Special thanks to Randy Rasmussen and Mark Larabee for their work on the letter and to Randy for submitting it.
  • Trail Coalition FY21 Conference Recommendations: A coalition of trail related organizations submitted recommendations November 13th regarding funding levels and report language currently included in either the House or Senate versions of the legislation to the conference committee. Special thanks to Tyler Ray and others for writing and submitting this letter.
  • Staff funding for NT Lands Office in Martinsburg, WV: A letter requesting funding to restore some positions at the NPS National Trails Land Resources Office in Martinsburg, WV was submitted November 20th. As many of you are aware, the amount of staff assigned to the office has declined over time. Recent legislation permanently secured full funding for LWCF. The letter requests that DOI invest in additional staff for the NPS National Trails Land Resources Office to provide needed attention to the National Trails System and to take advantage of opportunities for trail protection and preservation through LWCF.
    Special thanks to Brendan Mysliwiec, Ron Tipton and Tyler Ray for their work on the letter, and to Brendan for submitting it.  
  • USFS Deferred Maintenance: The U.S. Forest Service announced its list of Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) FY 2021 Deferred Maintenance Projects.
  • LWCF Coalition Update Regarding GAOA: After hailing passage of the GAOA this summer as a major victory for conservation, the Trump Administration missed the mark in implementing the new law, submitting Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) allocations and project lists to Congress that disregard key aspects of GAOA and of the Dingell Act, which permanently reauthorized LWCF just last year. Fortunately and in stark contrast, the chairman of a key Senate subcommittee released a version of the FY21 Interior Appropriations bill with a spending plan for LWCF more consistent with both the letter and spirit of the law. See more updates from the LWCF Coalition.

PNTS Submits Comments on Forest Service Manuals Regarding E-Bikes (10/26/2020)

PNTS submitted comments on Forest Service manuals (FSM) 7770-7710 regarding proposed updates to directives that clarify how e-bikes are managed on national forests, create a definition for e-bikes, and adopt three classes of e-bikes for designation as motor vehicles. Once finalized, these directive updates will provide needed guidance to field units under existing Travel Management Rule definitions, and establish criteria to designate roads, trails and areas for e-bikes use.

PNTS commended the U.S. Forest Service in defining e-bikes as motor vehicles and made several recommendations to more clearly define and strengthen the sections of the Forest Service manuals to prevent the use of e-bikes from interfering with the nature and purposes of our nation’s scenic and historic trails, including:
  • Further qualifying specific language that mentions the National Trails System Act and ensuring that the language is cross-referenced in other manuals.
  • Requesting that because e-bikes are defined as motor vehicles, they should only be allowed on National Trails where other motorized vehicle uses are permitted.     
  • Establishing that the impacts of bicycles and e-bikes may be different and therefore it should not be assumed that an e-bike is appropriate for use on a site that was previously approved for bicycle use.
  • Requesting that all Forest Service trails proposed for e-bike use receive site-specific engineering and environmental assessments prior to decisions to allow e-bikes as well as a thorough public input process so that trail users have the opportunity to provide input on trail user safety and potential user conflicts.
  • Extending FSM 7700-7710 guidance to National Historic Trails to provide clear instruction for both National Scenic Trails and National Historic Trails on U.S. Forest Service lands.
Special thanks to the following PNTS Advocacy & Policy Committee members for providing valuable input in the preparation of the comments submitted by PNTS: Justin Kooyman, Don Owen, Matthew Nelson, Randy Rasmussen, Elizabeth Stewart, and Greg Warren.

Great American Outdoors Act Implementation in Progress at DOI and USFS (9/28/2020)

There is little action occurring on trail-related legislative or budget issues in Congress at the moment. The current Federal fiscal year (FY 2020) ends on September 30th, but Congress has not passed any of the 12 appropriations bills so will act on a FY 2021 Continuing Resolution before October 1st to extend funding into the next fiscal year. Further action will likely wait until after the November elections.

On the other hand, there is much happening on implementation of the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) at both the Department of the Interior (DOI) and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS). FY 2021 project lists for Deferred Maintenance (DM) and Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) programs are due to Congress by November 2nd. The Partnership for the National Trails System is working alongside other groups to ensure that GAOA is implemented in a way that ensures adequate attention to national trail needs in both the DM and LWCF sides of the Act.

At the Department of the Interior: The Secretary of the Interior established a GAOA Task Force (Secretarial Order 3383) chaired by the Acting Director of the National Park Service Margaret Everson. The Partnership wrote a letter to Ms. Everson on September 8th to express its support for successful implementation of GAOA and requesting to be engaged in the Department’s discussions with external partners. To date, the Task Force has not issued any public documents or statements regarding its work.

At the U.S. Forest Service: The GAOA implementation process at the U.S. Forest Service is being led by Jeffrey Vail, Deputy Director for Recreation. The agency’s existing process for developing LWCF project lists through regional priority-setting hasn’t changed, but because the deferred maintenance funding is a new authorization the USFS believed it important to seek public input. To that end, the agency published its proposed regional lists of FY 2021 Deferred Maintenance projects in early September and offered a one week online comment period. The USFS lists included a number of important projects on or related to national and other recreational trails. The Partnership joined several other trail and outdoor recreation trail organizations in submitting comments to the USFS thanking the agency for attending to trail needs in this first round of DM projects and urging continued attention in the future. The Partnership had a call with Jeffrey Vail and others at USFS in late August, and also joined other NGOs in a stakeholder discussion with Associate Chief Chris French, Jeff Vail, and other USFS staff on September 18th, when suggestions and concerns about the agency’s GAOA implementation process – both DM and LWCF – were discussed.

The Partnership will continue to work with both DOI and USFS on implementation of the Great American Outdoors Act.


President Signs Great American Outdoors Act into Law (8/27/2020)

The President signed the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) into law on August 4, 2020, thus fully funding the Land and Water Conservation Fund starting in Fiscal Year 2021 (which begins October 1, 2020) and establishing an annual expenditure of dedicated funds to address deferred maintenance needs on Federal lands over a five-year timeframe, also starting in FY21. The implementation clock started ticking immediately after enactment, beginning with a 90-day period during which the Federal agencies are expected to prepare and send to Congress specific project lists identifying how the first year of funding for both LWCF and deferred maintenance would be spent. The Partnership is engaged with our Federal agency partners on the GAOA implementation effort and will remain attentive to any developments as it moves forward in the coming months.  Working with our member organizations and NGO partners, we want to make sure we identify opportunities through GAOA to further trail protection and improvements.

Congress has been on “recess” over the past several weeks and is slated to return on September 14. Congress needs to finalize the FY21 appropriations bills that include funding for agency budgets including trail administration, construction, and maintenance, but given that it is a major election year it is unlikely final action will occur until after November 3. So, we wait.

Great American Outdoors Act Passes House, Awaits President’s Signature into Law (7/30/2020)

There is more exciting news to report from Congress! On July 22, the U.S. House of Representatives voted resoundingly in favor of the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA)! The 310-107 vote was overwhelmingly bipartisan and was the product of years of work on behalf of hundreds of organizations and thousands of individuals. The House’s action, following passage of GAOA in the U.S. Senate in late June, sends the bill to the President to be signed into law, which is expected any day now. Enactment of GAOA ensures provides full and dedicated funding of the Land and Water Conservation Fund and a dedicated fund to address backlog maintenance needs in our national parks, forests, and other public lands over the next five years. The Partnership issued a statement upon House passage. Thank you for contacting your representatives in Congress!


PNTS Statement on the Great American Outdoors Act Passing the House (7/22/2020)

The Partnership for the National Trails System issued the following statement from Board President Barney Scout Mann upon passage of the Great American Outdoors Act in the U.S. House of Representatives:

Today’s vote to pass the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) and send it on to the President is a dream come true. The Partnership for the National Trails System is thrilled that the decades-long effort to fully and permanently fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and address the backlog of maintenance and construction on our public lands has resulted in passage of GAOA with strong bipartisan support.

In the midst of an incredibly challenging time, Congress has taken a bold step to invest in communities and special places all across the nation for the benefit of people and the protection of our natural resources in ways that will endure for generations to come. It is gratifying to see that this issue has brought people together rather than further divide us.

The Partnership is incredibly grateful to those who worked on this legislative effort for over 30 years and who worked so hard to get us to this day. Given how long we’ve been at it, the list of those we want to thank is pages long. In this moment, we especially want to acknowledge the GAOA’s lead sponsors in the House – Reps. Joe Cunningham (SC-1) and Mike Simpson (ID-2), House Natural Resources Committee Chair Raul Grijalva (AZ-3) – and House leadership for moving the bill so quickly following Senate passage. We also thank those who led action in the Senate last month – Sens. Cory Gardner (R-CO), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Rob Portman (R-OH) and Mark Warner (D-VA) – as well Senate leadership for making this important legislation a priority.

The National Trails System’s congressionally designated 30 scenic and historic trails are a critical part of America’s impressive public lands and provide spectacular outdoor recreation and cultural experiences. There is at least one national trail in each of our 50 states. These 30 trails connect with 84 national parks, 89 national forests, 70 national wildlife refuges, over 100 BLM public land areas, 179 national wilderness areas, and more than 230 major urban areas and trail towns. Over the years, substantial funding from LWCF has helped build out the trail footpath, protect viewsheds, and conserve important historic and cultural resources that help tell this country’s unique stories. Maintenance and construction funding have ensured that the trail experience is a positive one for millions of visitors each year. But there is much more to do to complete the length and breadth of the National Trails System as envisioned by Congress. We also recognize the importance of creating accessible, safe, and welcoming trail experiences for all users.

The Partnership and its member organizations look forward to working with our public agencies, local communities, and Congress to use GAOA funds to full effect along our scenic and historic trails, ensuring that the National Trails System remains a world-class public land resource for all people now and well into the future.


Great American Outdoors Act Approved by US Senate 73-25! House vote pending in July (6/30/2020)

There is exciting news to report! The U.S. Senate voted to pass the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) on June 17, following several days of debate and multiple procedural votes. This bipartisan legislation includes both full and dedicated funding of the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and a dedicated fund to address backlog maintenance needs in our national parks, forests, and other public lands over the next five years.  

The Partnership for the National Trails System, its members groups, and hundreds of other organizations, businesses, and individuals endorsed this bill and signed a letter to Congress in early May urging prompt action on the bill. A statement from the Partnership’s Board President Barney Mann upon Senate passage was included in a press release issued by the bill’s lead Republican sponsor, Sen. Cory Gardner of Colorado. For technical reasons, the GAOA as passed by the Senate is now HR 1957 and has been sent to the U.S. House of Representatives for further consideration.

In the House, leadership announced that the Senate-passed bill would be scheduled for a vote in late July, likely the week of July 20th. The strong hope and expectation are that the bill will pass without any amendments – any one of which would send the bill back to the Senate and possibly doom the bill’s enactment into law. Before the House vote, there is a lot of work to do, especially to gather more commitments from members to vote “yes” on the bill, without any amendments. One way to do that is to secure additional cosponsors of the House version of GAOA – HR 7092. Click here to contact your Member of Congress and urge them to cosponsor and vote yes!

In other news, during the week of June 29, the House planned to debate HR 2, the Moving Forward Act, which is a broad infrastructure package including reauthorization of the Transportation Bill with substantial funding for recreational trails as well as other infrastructure investments. The Partnership for the National Trails System has been working with other organizations to make the case to Congress that outdoor recreation and public lands, including trails, are a critical part of a national economic recovery effort and worthy of inclusion in an infrastructure package. It is not clear yet what approach the Senate might take to the infrastructure issue, but our focus will shift there should the House pass HR 2.

Given action on GAOA and infrastructure, it is clear that Congress has returned to consideration of “regular order” bills even as it continues to consider coronavirus-related legislation. This could mean that the Fiscal Year 2021 appropriations bills will move forward, but at this writing there is no specific calendar for action in either the House or Senate. PNTS along with other trail advocates submitted testimony to both House and Senate subcommittees urging full funding for LWCF and increases in trails funding, among other items. The two trails-focused House “Dear Colleague” letters mentioned in the March E-newsletter were also finalized in mid-March and will help bolster the case for trails in the FY 21 bill.


Great American Outdoors Act Scheduled for June Floor Action in Senate (5/27/2020)

UPDATE 6/11/2020: Great American Outdoors Act, the bill to fully fund LWCF and address backlog maintenance needs on federal public lands, is on the Senate floor as of this writing. A big win on Monday evening — 80-17 in favor of moving forward with debate — set the table for positive further action on procedural hurdles and closing off harmful and other amendments. After a few more procedural votes, it is expected that the Senate will vote on final passage on Tuesday, June 16. And then on to the House, where the hope is that leadership will bring the Senate-passed bill to the floor soon.

UPDATE 6/5/2020: A Senate cloture vote is expected on the Great American Outdoors Act this coming MONDAY June 8 at 5:30 p.m. as the “first vote back” for Senators after the weekend. Call your Senators TODAY and urge them to be in DC in time for Monday night’s first vote, and to support the bill with no amendments! PNTS submitted formal comments to BLM, NPS and USFWS on June 5 opposing those agencies’ proposed rules that would open up national trails to electric bikes. Several TLC member organizations (AMC, ATA, CDTC and PCTA) also submitted comments, as did Back Country Horsemen of America and American Hiking Society.

Congress is slowly getting back to work on “regular order” legislation after approving four funding packages aimed at addressing the economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on individuals and businesses. While additional action may occur on that front, both the House and Senate are starting to take up bills that address other issues.

There is good news on that front regarding upcoming Senate action on S. 3422, The Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA), a bipartisan legislative package to jointly address both full and dedicated funding of the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and a dedicated fund to address backlog maintenance needs in our national parks, forests, and other public lands. The Partnership for the National Trails System, its member groups and hundreds of other organizations, businesses, and individuals have endorsed this bill and sent a letter to Congress in early May urging prompt action on the bill. Just before the Senate recessed for Memorial Day, Majority Leader McConnell announced that the bill would be put in the queue for floor consideration in June, perhaps as early as the first full week.  

To recap, S. 3422 was introduced on March 9 with 59 bipartisan cosponsors and immediately placed on the Senate legislative calendar with the support of Senate leadership and the Trump Administration. Further action on the bill was suspended, along with all other “regular order” legislative activities, in mid-March when Congress left town for an indefinite period of time. But it is still possible to secure cosponsors of S. 3422 to maintain momentum for when Congress meets again. Click here to tell your Senators to support passage of the Great American Outdoors Act in the Senate. This document illustrates some of the economic benefits of GAOA. 

In the House, a bipartisan “Dear Colleague” letter urging action on GAOA as part of an infrastructure package got 118 signers over a short period of time — signaling strong support for quick action — and a companion measure to S. 3422 is expected to be introduced in the House very soon.  

In the meantime, the Partnership for the National Trails System has been working with other organizations to position outdoor recreation and public lands, including the National Trails System, as a critical part of a national economic recovery effort. PNTS sent a second letter to Congressional leaders in early May requesting specific attention to trails needs in a COVID-19 economic recovery or infrastructure package, and along with many other organizations has continued to urge Congress to include the outdoor recreation economy and public lands in its stimulus plans. It is still up in the air when that might happen. The House passed another COVID-19 response package, which did not include infrastructure investments, but the Senate is not acting on that bill or anything else related to coronavirus response as of this writing.

The return to a version of “regular order” could mean movement on other legislation like the Fiscal Year 2021 appropriations bills, but at this writing there is no specific calendar for action in either the House or Senate. The House and Senate appropriations subcommittees — including the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies subcommittees which have jurisdiction over LWCF and trails funding — are at work writing their respective FY 21 bills so that they will be ready when House and Senate leadership signal a return to regular order. PNTS along with other trail advocates submitted testimony to both House and Senate subcommittees urging full funding for LWCF and increases in trails funding, among other items. The two trails-focused House “Dear Colleague” letters mentioned in the March E-newsletter were also finalized in mid-March and will help bolster the case for trails in the FY 21 bill.

We hope to have more to report on both these legislative items in the next newsletter. In the meantime, we await further indications from Congress on how it will proceed in these very unusual times.


Congress focused on COVID-19 response; legislative calendar up in the air (4/28/2020)

Much has changed in the halls of Congress – and, indeed, all around the nation – since our last newsletter update from Washington, D.C. The coronavirus pandemic and ensuing economic havoc that has gripped many parts of the country have been the sole focus of recent Congressional action, with passage of four different bills to address some of the immediate financial needs of individuals and small businesses. It may be that additional economic stimulus legislation – possibly in the form of infrastructure investments – will be considered by Congress in the coming weeks, but at this writing what happens next in Congress is uncertain.  

When we last reported on Congressional actions, the focus was on S. 3422, The Great American Outdoors Act, a bipartisan legislative package to jointly address both full and dedicated funding of the Land and Water Conservation Fund and a dedicated fund to address backlog maintenance needs in our national parks, forests, and other public lands. The bill was introduced on March 9 with 59 bipartisan cosponsors and immediately placed on the Senate legislative calendar with the support of Senate leadership and the Trump Administration. Further action on the bill was suspended, along with all other “regular order” legislative activities, in mid-March when Congress left town for an indefinite period of time. But it is still possible to secure cosponsors of S. 3422 to maintain momentum for when Congress meets again. Click here to tell your Senators to support the act. 

In the meantime, the Partnership for the National Trails System has been working with other organizations to position outdoor recreation and public lands, including the National Trails System, as a critical part of a national economic recovery effort. PNTS sent a letter to Congressional leaders in late March requesting attention to trails and associated local communities in any COVID-19 response and along with many other organizations has continued to urge Congress to include the outdoor recreation economy and public lands in its stimulus plans. The question now is when that might happen. The House was set to return to D.C. on May 4, along with the Senate, but on April 28, House members were told the return date would be pushed back. (The Senate has held firm to a May 4th return.) So at this writing, things are very much up in the air.

This uncertainty over timing also affects “regular order” legislation like the FY 2021 appropriations bills. The House and Senate appropriations subcommittees – including the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies subcommittees which have jurisdiction over LWCF and trails funding – are at work writing their respective FY21 bills so that they will be ready when House and Senate leadership signal a return to regular order. PNTS along with other trail advocates submitted testimony to both House and Senate subcommittees urging full funding for LWCF and increases in trails funding, among other items. The two trails-focused House “Dear Colleague” letters mentioned in the March e-Newsletter were also finalized in mid-March and will help bolster the case for trails in the FY21 bill.

We hope to have more to report on both these legislative items in the next newsletter. In the meantime, we await further indications from Congress on how it will proceed in these very unusual times.


House and Senate Working on FY 2021 Federal Budget, LWCF and More (3/25/2020)

The Partnership for the National Trails System has been hard at work in the halls of Congress and with our federal agency partners over the past two months! We kicked off the year with an invitation from a House subcommittee to testify at “Public Witness Day” on February 6 regarding the importance of the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and other trail funding needs. Click here to view the panel’s testimony, which goes from about the 43:25 minute mark to 1:06:35 (AHS starts at 48:45; CDTC at 53:55; and PNTS at 58:30). Hot on the heels of that, the Partnership jointly hosted another wildly successful “Hike the Hill” from February 9-13, which sent over 100 trail advocates to Capitol Hill, broadening and deepening congressional commitments to the National Trails System and generating a strong push for LWCF as well as increased funding for management and construction along our national scenic and historic trails. Our strong presence in Washington, D.C. during Hike the Hill week also led to the announcement on February 11 by U.S. Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen of the 10 Year Trail Challenge at a meeting attended by over 50 trail advocates, which she later included in this blog post

Our efforts are paying off! A bipartisan House “Dear Colleague” letter urging increases in Fiscal Year 2021 for the National Trails System garnered 82 signatures – the highest number ever! At the same time, the U.S. Senate was putting together a new bipartisan legislative package (S. 3422 The Great American Outdoors Act) to jointly address both full and dedicated LWCF funding and a dedicated fund to address backlog maintenance needs in our national parks. Click here to tell your Senators to support the act. Working with other groups, the Partnership helped secure a broadening of the bill’s provisions to include other federal agency backlog maintenance needs – critical to a host of national scenic and historic trails – AND 59 original cosponsors, a very impressive showing! Following introduction of this important legislation, the Partnership was invited to a group meeting with the bill’s eight original sponsors, who encouraged us to keep pushing forward as they work to position the bill for Senate floor action. 

Because full and dedicated funding of LWCF is not yet secured, PNTS has been an active member of the LWCF Coalition working to secure broad bipartisan support for robust appropriations for FY 2021. To that end, 233 House members signed a “Dear Colleague” urging the House Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee to increase funding for LWCF in the FY 2021 bill it will write in the coming weeks. A similar letter in the Senate garnered 46 signers. The House and Senate continue to hold hearings on FY 2021 budget proposals. Typically, the House moves first to write the annual appropriations bill and we will watch for that. 

The Partnership for the National Trails System remains committed to strong advocacy in Washington, D.C. At this writing, however, the economic and health impacts of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is understandably consuming all of Congress’ time and it is unclear how much other work will advance under the circumstances. We are also working with other organizations to position outdoor recreation as a critical part of a national economic recovery effort, including our national trails.


FY 21 budget and appropriations process underway in Congress;  FY 21 President’s budget released (2/26/2020)

The second session of the 116th Congress began in earnest in mid January and moved forward on several important fronts over the past several weeks. Because it is an election year, the House and Senate are hoping to act on legislative and budget matters in the early part of the year before House, Senate and Presidential campaigns occupy the field.

The Partnership for the National Trails System was invited to testify before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies, chaired by Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN), along with other trail advocates like the Continental Divide Trail Coalition and the American Hiking Society. On February 6, Kathy DeCoster, PNTS’ Advocacy and Policy Director, joined Amanda Wheelock of Continental Divide Trail Coalition and Kate Van Waes of American Hiking Society as part of a panel – along with The Nature Conservancy – who testified with a focus on the Land and Water Conservation Fund as well as covering other trail issues. PNTS’ testimony was well received, and Chair McCollum expressed gratitude for giving her the “ammunition” to make the case for LWCF and trails funding. The hearing was also attended by Rep. Mike Simpson ((R-ID) and Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-ME).

Click here to view the panel’s testimony, which goes from about the 43:25 minute mark to 1:06:35 (AHS starts at 48:45; CDTC at 53:55; and PNTS at 58:30).

Just a few days later, PNTS and AHS co-sponsored the annual “Hike the Hill” advocacy days from February 9-13, which brought more than 120 advocates to Capitol Hill making visits to hundreds of congressional offices and several federal agencies important to trails. A full report on Hike the Hill activities will be included in the March update. In their Hill meetings, trail advocates focused on annual appropriations for national trails, full funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, funding for recreation trails through the transportation bill, and access to the outdoors, among other issues.

On February 10, the Fiscal Year 2021 President’s budget was released, providing a counterpoint to our Hike the Hill messages by once again virtually eliminating LWCF and otherwise reducing funding for trails and recreation. PNTS and other trail advocates are countering these proposals by working with members of Congress on marshaling support for increases in trails funding and LWCF through “Dear Colleague” letters to Chair McCollum and the House appropriations subcommittee. More on that in the March update, as well.

In other news, on February 13, the House of Representatives approved a bill – H.R. 2299 the Central Coast Heritage Act,which includes a provision authorizing the Condor Trail as an addition to the National Trails System as a National Scenic Trail. There is a companion bill in the Senate and we will watch for next steps there. On a similar note, on February 27th, the House was poised to consider H.R. 2490, a bill to authorize the National Park Service to study the feasibility of adding the Chief Standing Bear National Historic Trail to the National Trails System. We will track this legislation as it moves through the process.


Bills Requiring Annual Full Appropriation of Land and Water Conservation Fund Money Await Congress’ Vote (1/31/2020)

Work continues to convince Congress to vote on the LWCF Permanent Funding Act S.1081 and the companion House bill H.R.3195. These bills require annual appropriation of the full $900 million authorized for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). S.1081 is cosponsored by 50 Senators and H.R.3195 has 233 cosponsors. Over 170 democrat representatives supporting H.R.3195 have sent a letter urging Speaker Pelosi and House leaders to promptly bring the bill to a vote.

Congress has only appropriated the full authorized $900 million for the LWCF several times over the 55 year history of this most important conservation program. If these bills become law, the authorized $900 million must be appropriated annually with 40% of the money allocated for land acquisition by Federal agencies, another 40% allocated to all the States by formula, and the remaining 20% to be allocated by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. A percentage of the Federal allocation would be directed toward increasing recreational access to public lands, such as acquiring land to close trail gaps.


Congress Passes FY 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill — Bills Requiring Annual Full Appropriation of Land and Water Conservation Fund Money Await Congress’s Vote (12/26/2019)

Just in time to avert a shutdown of the government, Congress passed the FY 2020 Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill as part of an overall funding package for the government. The Interior portion of the bill provides $495.103 million for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). This amount is $45 million more than was appropriated for FY 2019 and is the most amount Congress has appropriated for LWCF projects since 2003. LWCF money is provided to acquire land along the Ala Kahakai, Lewis and Clark, and Oregon National Historic Trails.

The FY 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill also provides a $1 million increase for the national scenic and historic trails administered and managed by the Bureau of Land Management and a $560,000 increase for the National Trails Program of the National Park Service. The bill provides $81 million for the U.S. Forest Service to maintain trails in the national forests, an increase of $1 million. From this funding the Forest Service will allocate $7,925,000 to administer and manage the national scenic and historic trails.

Meanwhile, work continues to convince Congress to vote on the LWCF Permanent Funding Act S.1081 and the companion House bill H.R.3195. These bills require annual appropriation of the full $900 million authorized for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). S.1081 is cosponsored by 50 Senators and H.R.3195 now has 233 cosponsors.

Congress has only appropriated the full authorized $900 million for the LWCF several times over the 55 year history of this most important conservation program. If these bills become law, the authorized $900 million must be appropriated annually with 40% of the money allocated for land acquisition by federal agencies, another 40% allocated to all the states by formula, and the remaining 20% to be allocated by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. A percentage of the federal allocation would be directed toward increasing recreational access, such as land closing trail gaps, to public lands.


Senate Passes FY 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill — Bills Requiring Annual Full Appropriation of Land and Water Conservation Fund Money Approved by House and Senate Committees (12/2/2019)

In early November, the Senate passed the Fiscal Year 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill, which provides $465 million for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). This amount is only $15 million more than was appropriated for FY 2019 and is considerably less than the $524 million for LWCF provided in the FY 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill passed by the House in mid-June. The House level is 20% more than Congress appropriated for Fiscal Year 2019 and the highest funding level since 2003.

The FY 2020 Senate Interior Appropriations Bill also provides different amounts of money to fund the operations of the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, and the U.S. Forest Service than provided by the House Bill. The differences between the Senate and House bills will be reconciled by a Conference Committee later this year.

Meanwhile, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee marked up and voted for passage of the LWCF Permanent Funding Act S.1081. This bill and the companion House bill — H.R.3195 — require annual appropriation of the full $900 million authorized for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). S.1081 is cosponsored by 50 Senators and H.R.3195 now has 233 cosponsors. With both bills voted out of committee, work is underway to bring them to a vote in the House and Senate.

Congress has only appropriated the full authorized $900 million for the LWCF several times over the 55 year history of this most important conservation program. If these bills become law, the authorized $900 million must be appropriated annually with 40% of the money allocated for land acquisition by Federal agencies, another 40% allocated to all the States by formula, and the remaining 20% to be allocated by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. A percentage of the Federal allocation would be directed toward increasing recreational access, such as land closing trail gaps, to public lands.


Senate Debates FY 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill — Cosponsors Still Being Sought for Bills Requiring Annual Full Appropriation of Land and Water Conservation Fund Money (10/28/2019)

The Senate has begun debating the Fiscal Year 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill, which provides $465 million for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). This amount is only $15 million more than was appropriated for FY 2019 and is considerably less than the $524 million for LWCF provided in the FY 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill passed by the House in mid-June. The House level is 20% more than Congress appropriated for FY 2019 and the highest funding level since 2003.

A bipartisan LWCF amendment has been filed in the Senate to the FY 2020 Interior Appropriations bill. The amendment, cosponsored by Sens. Gardner (R-CO), Tester (D-MT), Daines (R-MT), Bennet (D-CO), Burr (R-NC), Shaheen (D-NH), Collins (R-ME) and Heinrich (D-NM), would provide full funding for LWCF at $900 million in FY 2020. Please thank the cosponsors directly and on social media! 

The FY 2020 Senate Interior Appropriations Bill also provides different amounts of money to fund the operations of the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, and the U.S. Forest Service than provided by the House bill. The differences between the Senate and House bills will be reconciled by a Conference Committee later this fall.

Meanwhile, the Land and Water Conservation Fund Coalition continues to urge members of Congress to cosponsor the LWCF Permanent Funding Act, H.R.3195 and S.1081. These bills require annual appropriation of the full $900 million authorized for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and are companion bills. H.R.3195 now has 230 cosponsors. The companion Senate Bill – S.1081 – is cosponsored by 50 Senators. The goal is to convince 25 more Representatives and at least 2 more Senators to cosponsor the appropriate bill. A legion of environmental organizations are encouraging all Representatives and Senators to join their colleagues in cosponsoring these major environmental bills.

Congress has only appropriated the full authorized $900 million for the LWCF several times over the 55 year history of this most important conservation program. If these bills become law the authorized $900 million must be appropriated annually with 40% of the money allocated for land acquisition by Federal agencies, another 40% allocated to all the States by formula, and the remaining 20% to be allocated by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. A percentage of the Federal allocation would be directed toward increasing recreational access, such as land closing trail gaps, to public lands.


Congress Passes Continuing Resolution to Fund the Government Through November 21st — Senate Appropriations Committee Reports FY 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill — Cosponsors Being Sought for Bills Requiring Annual Full Appropriation of LWCF Money (9/30/2019)

Congress has passed a Continuing Resolution to fund the government agencies through November 21, 2019, and to give more time to complete the 12 FY 2020 appropriations bills. The Senate Appropriations Committee has also reported out the FY 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill providing $465 million for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). This amount is only $15 million more than was appropriated for FY2019 and is considerably less than the $524 million for LWCF provided in the FY 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill passed by the House in mid-June. The House level is 20% more than Congress appropriated for fiscal year 2019 and the highest funding level since 2003.

The FY 2020 Senate Interior Appropriations Bill also provides different amounts of money to fund the operations of the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, and the U.S. Forest Service than provided by the House Bill. The differences between the Senate and House bills will be reconciled by a Conference Committee later this fall.

Meanwhile, the Land and Water Conservation Fund Coalition continues to urge members of Congress to cosponsor the LWCF Permanent Funding Act, H.R.3195 and S.1081These bills require annual appropriation of the full $900 million authorized for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and are companion bills. H.R.3195 now has 203 cosponsors. The companion Senate Bill S.1081 is cosponsored by 49 Senators. The goal is to convince 25 more Representatives and at least two more Senators to cosponsor the appropriate bill. Even though Congress is away from Washington on its two-week Columbus Day Recess, a legion of environmental organizations are encouraging all Representatives and Senators to join their colleagues in cosponsoring these major environmental bills.

Congress has only appropriated the full authorized $900 million for the LWCF several times over the 55 year history of this most important conservation program. If these bills become law the authorized $900 million must be appropriated annually with 40% of the money allocated for land acquisition by Federal agencies, another 40% allocated to all the States by formula, and the remaining 20% to be allocated by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. A percentage of the Federal allocation would be directed toward increasing recreational access, such as land closing trail gaps, to public lands.


Cosponsors Being Sought for Bills Requiring Annual Full Appropriation of LWCF Money & House Passes FY 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill (8/29/2019)

The Land and Water Conservation Fund Coalition is urging members of Congress to cosponsor the LWCF Permanent Funding Act, H.R.3195 and S.1081. These bills require annual appropriation of the full $900 million authorized for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and are companion bills. H.R.3195 now has 189 cosponsors. The companion Senate Bill, S.1081, is cosponsored by 49 Senators. The goal is to convince 100 more Representatives and at least 5 more Senators to cosponsor the appropriate bill. Even though Congress is away from Washington on its annual August Recess, a legion of environmental organizations are encouraging all Representatives and Senators to join their colleagues in cosponsoring these major environmental bills.

Congress has only appropriated the full authorized $900 million for the LWCF several times over the 55 year history of this most important conservation program. If these bills become law, the authorized $900 million must be appropriated annually with 40% of the money allocated for land acquisition by Federal agencies, another 40% allocated to all the States by formula, and the remaining 20% to be allocated by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. A percentage of the Federal allocation would be directed toward increasing recreational access, such as land closing trail gaps, to public lands.

Meanwhile, the House passed the FY 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill in mid-June, appropriating increased funding for the land managing agencies and the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). The approved bill provides $524 million for LWCF, 20% more than Congress appropriated for fiscal year 2019 and the highest funding level since 2003.

The bill also includes $2.65 billion for the Operation of the National Park System, $144 million more than the fiscal year 2019 enacted level. This increase includes funding for 500 new staff at park units.  This is the budget account that provides funding for the 23 national scenic and historic trails administered by the National Park Service. In the Bureau of Land Management appropriation, the bill includes $45,112,000 for the National Landscape Conservation System, $5,293,000 above the fiscal year 2019 enacted level. This increase is intended by the Appropriations Committee to “allow for greater inventory and monitoring of cultural resources and encourages the Bureau to increase its cultural resources staff.  The national scenic and historic trails crossing land managed by the BLM are components of the National Landscape Conservation System.

The bill provides $3.68 billion for the Forest Service (non-fire), a programmatic increase of $257 million above the 2019 enacted level. The bill maintains the budget account for the trails — including national scenic and historic trails — administered and managed by the Forest Service.

Congress adopted a two year budget agreement just before leaving for the August Recess. This agreement will facilitate completion of the Fiscal Year 2020 appropriations bills when Congress returns to work after the Labor Day holiday. The Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee has continued to work on its version of the Fiscal Year 2020 Interior and Related Agencies funding bill.


Cosponsors Sought for Bills Requiring Annual Full Appropriation of LWCF Money, House Passes FY 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill (7/23/2019)

The Land and Water Conservation Fund Coalition is urging members of Congress to cosponsor the LWCF Permanent Funding Act, H.R.3195 and S.1081. These bills require annual appropriation of the full $900 million authorized for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and are companion bills. H.R.3195 now has 157 cosponsors. The companion Senate Bill S.1081 is cosponsored by 48 Senators. The goal is to convince 100 more Representatives and at least five more Senators to cosponsor the appropriate bill. A legion of environmental organizations are encouraging all Representatives and Senators to join their colleagues in cosponsoring these major environmental bills.

Congress has only appropriated the full authorized $900 million for the LWCF several times over the 55 year history of this most important conservation program. If these bills become law, the authorized $900 million must be appropriated annually with 40% of the money allocated for land acquisition by Federal agencies, another 40% allocated to all the States by formula, and the remaining 20% to be allocated by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. A percentage of the Federal allocation would be directed toward increasing recreational access, such as land closing trail gaps, to public lands.

Meanwhile, the House passed the FY 2020 Interior Appropriations Bill in mid-June, appropriating increased funding for the land managing agencies and LWCF. The approved bill provides $524 million for LWCF, 20% more than Congress appropriated for fiscal year 2019 and the highest funding level since 2003.

The bill also includes $2.65 billion for Operation of the National Park System, $144 million more than the fiscal year 2019 enacted level. This increase includes funding for 500 new staff at park units. This is the budget account that provides funding for the 23 national scenic and historic trails administered by the National Park Service. In the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) appropriation, the bill includes $45,112,000 for the National Landscape Conservation System, $5,293,000 above the fiscal year 2019 enacted level. This increase is intended by the Appropriations Committee to “allow for greater inventory and monitoring of cultural resources and encourages the Bureau to increase its cultural resources staff.” The national scenic and historic trails crossing land managed by the BLM are components of the National Landscape Conservation System.

The bill provides $3.68 billion for the U.S. Forest Service (non-fire), a programmatic increase of $257 million above the 2019 enacted level. The bill maintains the budget account for the trails — including national scenic and historic trails — administered and managed by the Forest Service.

The Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee continues to work on its version of the Fiscal Year 2020 Interior and Related Agencies funding bill.


House Bill Introduced to Require Full Appropriation of Land and Water Conservation Fund Money (6/20/2019)

On June 12, a bipartisan group of Representatives introduced the LWCF Permanent Funding Act, H.R. 3195. The bill requires annual appropriation of the full $900 million authorized for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and is a companion to Senate bill 1081 introduced in early April. H.R. 3195 was originally sponsored by:

  • Democrats: Rep. Jefferson Van Drew (NJ), House Natural Resources Committee Chair Raul Grijalva (AZ), HNRC Subcommittee Chairs Debra Haaland (NM), Jared Huffman (CA), Alan Lowenthal (CA), Ruben Gallego (AZ), and TJ Cox (CA), as well as Vice Chair for Insular Affairs Gregorio Sablan (CNMI)
  • Republicans: Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (PA), Lee Zeldin (NY), and John Katko (NY).

The bill now has 87 cosponsors. The companion Senate Bill – S. 1081 – is cosponsored by 44 Senators.

Acting promptly, the House Natural Resources Committee has already “marked up” H.R. 3195 and recommended it for adoption by the House of Representatives.

Congress has only appropriated the full authorized $900 million for the LWCF several times over the 55 year history of this most important conservation program. If S. 1081 or H.R. 3195 becomes law, the authorized $900 million must be appropriated annually with 40% of the money allocated for land acquisitions by federal agencies, another 40% allocated to all the states by formula, and the remaining 20% to be allocated by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. A percentage of the federal allocation would be directed toward increasing recreational access, such as land closing trail gaps, to public lands. All Representatives and Senators are being encouraged by environmental organizations to join their colleagues in cosponsoring these major environmental bills.


House Appropriations Committee Recommends Increased Interior Funding for Fiscal Year 2020 (5/26/2019)

On May 22, the House Appropriations Committee voted out the Interior Appropriations Bill for fiscal year 2020, recommending increased funding for the land managing agencies and the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). The bill voted out of the Committee provides $524 million for LWCF, 20% more than Congress appropriated for fiscal year 2019 and the highest funding level since 2003.

The bill also includes $2.65 billion for Operation of the National Park System, $144 million more than the fiscal year 2019 enacted level. This increase includes funding for 500 new staff at park units. This is the budget account that provides funding for the 23 national scenic and historic trails administered by the National Park Service. In the Bureau of Land Management appropriation, the bill includes $45,112,000 for the National Landscape Conservation System, $5,293,000 above the fiscal year 2019 enacted level.  This increase is intended by the Appropriations Committee to “allow for greater inventory and monitoring of cultural resources and encourages the Bureau to increase its cultural resources staff. The national scenic and historic trails crossing land managed by the BLM are components of the National Landscape Conservation System.

The bill provides $3.68 billion for the U.S. Forest Service (non-fire), a programmatic increase of $257 million above the 2019 enacted level. The bill eliminates cost pools from the Forest Service account and instead provides funding for Forest Service operations in a new account. 

The full House of Representatives must act upon the bill to advance the appropriations process for fiscal year 2020. Meanwhile the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee is in the process of holding hearings on the various agencies’ budgets to prepare its version of the fiscal year 2020 Interior Appropriations bill.


Senate Bill Introduced to Require Full Appropriation of Land and Water Conservation Fund Money (4/23/2019)

A bipartisan group of Senators has introduced a bill to require annual appropriation of the full $900 million authorized for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). Senate bill 1081 was introduced in early April by Senators Joe Manchin III, Cory Gardner, Maria Cantwell, Richard Burr, Michael Bennet, Jon Tester, Steve Daines, Susan Collins, Angus King, Tom Udall, Martin Heinrich, Lindsey Graham, Lamar Alexander, and Jeanne Shaheen.

Congress has only appropriated the full authorized $900 million for the LWCF several times over the 55 year history of this most important conservation program. If S.1081 becomes law, the authorized $900 million must be appropriated annually with 40% of the money allocated for land acquisitions by Federal agencies, another 40% allocated to all the States by formula, and the remaining 20% to be allocated by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. A percentage of the Federal allocation would be directed toward increasing recreational access, such as land closing trail gaps, to public lands. All Senators are being encouraged by environmental organizations to join their colleagues in cosponsoring this major environmental bill.


President Signs S.47 Reauthorizing the Land and Water Conservation Fund and National Trails Route Adjustments and Proposes Zero Funding for LWCF for Fiscal Year 2020 (3/27/2019)

In early March, the President signed S. 47 John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management and Recreation Act into law. This Omnibus Public Lands Act permanently reauthorized the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and authorized the North Country National Scenic Trail Route Adjustment Act, and the Eastern Legacy Extension of the Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail among its many provisions.  

Within days of signing the most significant public lands legislation since 2009, the President released the proposed Fiscal Year 2020 Budget. As in the two previous years, this budget proposes to provide zero funding for LWCF and an 11% across the board cut for the Department of the Interior, along with similar levels of cuts for the other domestic departments of the federal government. In contrast, the FY 2020 Budget proposes massive increases in Defense spending.

Besides the proposed drastic decrease in LWCF funding, several of the other agency funding accounts that specifically support national scenic and historic trails are proposed to be cut significantly. These include the National Park Service’s funding for 23 national scenic and historic trails proposed to be cut by $159,000 and the Volunteers-in-Parks (VIP) program by $4 million. Also, the U.S. Forest Service’s Trails Maintenance Account (CMTL) is proposed to be cut by $15 million, from $80 million appropriated for Fiscal Year 2019 to $65 million for Fiscal Year 2020.

Please contact your Senators and Representatives to thank them for passing S. 47, permanently reauthorizing the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and authorizing the North Country and Lewis & Clark Trails route adjustments and extensions. Also encourage them to ignore these proposed drastic funding cuts and once again appropriate robust funding for the LWCF and the National Scenic and Historic Trails.


Congress Completes Funding for Agencies Through Fiscal 2019; Senate and House Reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund and Pass National Trails Route Adjustments (2/27/2019)

On February 12th (Charles Darwin’s and Abraham Lincoln’s birthdays), the United States Senate passed  S. 47 – Natural Resources Management Act – by the hugely bipartisan vote of 92-8. This Omnibus Public Lands Bill includes permanent reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and authorization of the North Country National Scenic Trail Route Adjustment Act and the Eastern Legacy Extension of the Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail, among many provisions.  

On February 26th, the United States House of Representatives also passed S. 47 by an equally huge bipartisan vote of 363-62. The House also added the title John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management and Recreation Act to the act in honor of the Michigan Congressman, longest serving member of the House, who recently died.

To avoid another partial government shutdown Congress also completed the Omnibus Fiscal Year 2019 Appropriations Bill a day before the funding for the agencies involved would run out. The Interior Department agencies, the U.S. Forest Service and a number of other Federal agencies are now funded to work until September 30, 2019 — the end of the Federal fiscal year.

Please contact your Senators and Representatives to thank them for passing S. 47 permanently reauthorizing the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and authorizing the North Country and Lewis & Clark Trails route adjustments and extensions.


Congress Continues Funding Agencies Through February 15th; Efforts to Reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund Continue (1/29/2019)

The 116th Congress convened in early January in the midst of the longest shutdown of the Federal government with the Democrats in control of the House of Representatives. At the end of January, all of the Federal government is working again funded until February 15th through yet another Continuing Resolution. Besides the appropriations to finally fund government agencies for the rest of Fiscal Year 2019, several bills critical for national trails also await action by Congress.

During last autumn’s Lame Duck Session, Energy & Natural Resources Chairwoman Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-WA) assembled a large Omnibus Public Lands Bill which included permanent reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), the North Country National Scenic Trail Route Adjustment Act, and the Eastern Legacy Extension of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail among many provisions. That bill has been reintroduced in the new Congress as S. 47 – Natural Resources Management Act. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) has also introduced a “stand alone” version of the North Country National Scenic Trail Route Adjustment Act as S. 96.

Meanwhile, Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), the new Chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, has announced that permanent reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) is his top priority for action in the new Congress. Bills to accomplish that and to complete the North Country and Lewis and Clark National Trail adjustments are expected to be introduced in the House of Representatives.

Please contact your Senators and Representatives NOW urging them to reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). Urge you Senators to push for a prompt vote on S. 47 – Natural Resources Management Act.


‘Lame Duck’ Session Fails to Keep Funding Government Agencies and to Reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund (12/27/2018)

Despite several weeks of negotiating and political posturing, Congress recessed its post-election “Lame Duck” Session and left Washington, D.C. for the winter holidays without providing the funding to keep about one-quarter of the government agencies working or permanently reauthorizing the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). The Senate and House each passed Continuing Resolutions to fund the affected agencies through February 8, 2019, but the President refused to sign the bills.

The Senate did develop an Omnibus Public Lands Bill which includes:

  • Permanent reauthorization for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF);
  • Authorization of the North Country National Scenic Trail Route Adjustment — extending the Trail east to link with the Long and Appalachian Trails in Vermont and relocating it to follow the Lake Superior Trail, Kekekabic Trail, and Border Trail in northern Minnesota;
  • Authorization of the Eastern Extension of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail from Wood River, Illinois up the Ohio River to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, finally bringing Indiana into the National Trails System;
  • Authorization of the Route 66 National Historic Trail;
  • Authorization of a Feasibility Study of a proposed Zebulon Pike National Historic Trail.

A vigorous bipartisan effort to attach this Public Lands Omnibus bill to the spending Continuing Resolution was thwarted by the objections of Senator Mike Lee (R-UT).  Senate Energy & Natural Resources Chairwoman Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) did secure a “handshake promise” from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) for a vote on the Public Lands Omnibus Bill in early January.

Please contact your Senators urging them to pressure Senate Majority Leader McConnell to keep his promise to schedule a vote on the Public Lands Omnibus Bill reauthorizing the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and authorizing several National Trails. Contact your Representatives urging them to approve the Senate’s Public Lands Omnibus Bill when they have a chance to vote on it.


‘Lame Duck’ Session is this Congress’ last chance to Reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund (11/26/2018)

Congress has returned to Washington, D.C. for a post-election “Lame Duck” Session to complete the Fiscal Year 2019 Interior, Agriculture, and other Appropriations bills to fund the government and other “must pass legislation.” Two of these bills, S. 569 and H.R. 6759, would permanently reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) with “full and dedicated funding” — $900 million required to be appropriated annually to acquire critical lands for conservation and recreation. S. 569, sponsored by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Richard Burr (R-NC) has 47 co-sponsors. H.R. 6759, sponsored by Representatives Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) and Ryan Costello (R-PA) has 19 co-sponsors.

Please contact your Senators urging them to co-sponsor S. 569 and your Representatives urging them to co-sponsor H.R. 6759 NOW and to request House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to schedule votes on these bills to reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) during the “Lame Duck” Session.  


Congress Lets the Land and Water Conservation Fund Expire While Efforts to Reauthorize LWCF Continue (10/31/2018)

Federal Fiscal Year 2018 ended on September 30, and Congress failed to act to reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), allowing it to expire. Meanwhile, the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee on Tuesday, October 2 – the 50th Anniversary of the National Trails System and the Wild and Scenic Rivers System – marked up bills to reauthorize LWCF and provide funding for the Parks maintenance backlog. S. 569, sponsored by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Richard Burr (R-NC) with 47 co-sponsors, permanently reauthorizes LWCF at $900 million and requires that the full amount be appropriated each year to acquire critical lands for conservation and recreation. S. 3172, sponsored by Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) with 30 co-sponsors, establishes the National Park Service Legacy Restoration Fund and provides $1.3 billion annually to address the infrastructure maintenance needs in the National Park System.

Pressure is building for Congress to complete the Fiscal Year 2019 Interior, Agriculture, and other Appropriations bills to fund the government and other “must pass legislation” during the “Lame Duck” Session following the November 6th Election. Two of these bills, S. 569 and HR. 6759, would permanently reauthorize the LWCF with “full and dedicated funding” – $900 million required to be appropriated annually.

Please contact your Senators urging them to co-sponsor S. 569 and your Representatives urging them to co-sponsor HR. 6759 NOW and to request House Speaker Ryan and Senate Majority Leader McConnell to schedule votes on these bills to reauthorize LWCF during the “Lame Duck” Session.  


Historic Senate Action Permanently Authorizes LWCF and Guarantees Dedicated Funding (10/2/2018)

The Land and Water Conservation Fund Coalition released the following statement on October 2, the 50th anniversary of the National Trails System Act: “The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee reached an historic bipartisan agreement to provide full, dedicated funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). The LWCF Coalition, along with millions of Americans and organizations from across the country, are united in our push to see this historic legislation signed into law this year.”


Congress Continues Funding Agencies Through December 7th; Efforts to Reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund Continue (9/28/2018)

During the last week of Federal Fiscal Year 2018, Congress passed a Continuing Resolution to fund the work of the government agencies through December 7th. This resolution continues funding for the agencies at the 2018 level into the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2019 while giving Congress more time to resolve the differences between the House and Senate versions of the Interior, Agriculture, and other Appropriations bills.

Meanwhile, the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee has scheduled a markup for Tuesday, October 2nd — the 50th Anniversary of the National Trails System and the Wild and Scenic Rivers System — on bills to reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and provide funding for the Parks maintenance backlog. S. 569, sponsored by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Richard Burr (R-NC) with 47 co-sponsors, permanently reauthorizes LWCF at $900 million and requires that that full amount be appropriated each year to acquire critical lands for conservation and recreation. S. 3172, sponsored by Senate Rob Portman (R-OH) with 30 co-sponsors, establishes the National Park Service Legacy Restoration Fund and provides $1.3 billion annually to address the infrastructure maintenance needs in the National Park System.

Please contact your Senators and Representatives NOW urging them to reauthorize the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). One way to convey this message is to sign onto this group letter circulated by the Land and Water Conservation Fund Coalition that will be delivered to Congress on October 1st.


Senate passes FY19 Interior Appropriations Bill / House passes Lewis and Clark NHT Bill (8/24/2018)

On August 1st, the Senate passed an amended version of H.R. 6147, the Interior Appropriations Bill, to fund the Interior Department agencies, U.S. Forest Service, and several other “related agencies” for Fiscal Year 2019. Among the amendments made was to allocate $425 million from the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) for the Federal agencies to purchase land rather than the $360 million passed by the House. The Senate version also provides $5 million more funding (a total of $41.819 million) for the National Conservation Lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management than the House did, but also $5 million less than the $85 million provided by the House for maintenance of trails by the Forest Service. A Conference Committee from the two Houses Appropriations Committees is working on reconciling the differences into one identical bill for consideration by both legislative bodies in September.

Before leaving Washington for the August Recess, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 3054, the Eastern Extension of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail. This bill enacts the recommendation from the National Park Service Feasibility Study on the Eastern Legacy of the Lewis & Clark Expedition to extend the National Historic Trail up the Ohio River to Pittsburgh from the Trail’s current eastern end at Wood River, IL. If the Senate concurs with the House action, Indiana — the only state without a national scenic or historic trail — would be included in the National Trails System.

The efforts to convince Congress to reauthorize LWCF before it expires on September 30th continue by dozens of environmental and conservation organizations throughout the country. Please contact your Senators and Representatives urging them to reauthorize the Land & Water Conservation Fund.


House passes FY19 Interior Appropriations Bill (7/24/2018)

In mid-July, the House of Representatives narrowly passed HR 6147, the Interior Appropriations Bill, to fund the Interior Department agencies, U.S. Forest Service, and several other “related agencies” for Fiscal Year 2019. The bill was passed after an amendment offered by Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) to transfer $2.5 million from Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) money allocated for land acquisition by the Bureau of Land Management to the National Park Service to help address the infrastructure maintenance backlog was defeated. Another amendment offered to the Interior Appropriations Bill to reauthorize LWCF was rejected by the House Rules Committee before the bill was considered by the House. The Senate has not yet acted on its version of the FY19 Interior Appropriations Bill. The efforts to convince Congress to reauthorize LWCF before it expires on September 30th continue by dozens of environmental and conservation organizations throughout the country.


Congress Continues Fiscal Year 2019 Appropriations and Half-Passes North Country NST Route Adjustment (6/26/2018)

In early June, the Senate Appropriations Committee followed the House lead and “marked up” its version of the bill to fund the Interior Department agencies, U.S. Forest Service, and several other “related agencies” for Fiscal Year 2019. The Senate version includes appropriating $425 million — the same amount as appropriated for FY 2018 — from the Land and Water Conservation Fund for land acquisition by the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Forest Service. The House had earlier recommended providing $360 million from the LWCF. Either of these levels of funding will provide money for land acquisition along the Overmountain Victory, Lewis & Clark, and Captain John Smith Chesapeake national historic trails and the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail. On June 20, the Land and Water Conservation Fund champions in the House and Senate rallied on the steps of the U.S. Capitol with conservation leaders and outdoor recreation advocates and vowed to save LWCF. The bipartisan members of Congress hailed the launch of the 100-day campaign to #SaveLWCF, an effort that will highlight national parks, public lands, and conservation success stories in states across the country. LWCF will expire on September 30, 2018 unless Congress acts.

The House Interior Appropriations bill also proposes to increase by $50 million the funding for the National Park Service to operate the National Park System (including the National Trails System) and to increase the U.S. Forest Service’s trail maintenance funding by $5 million. Meanwhile, the Senate Interior bill includes a $5 million increase for the BLM to manage the National Conservation Lands System (including national trails). Each bill must be approved by the respective House of Congress, their differences reconciled, and then approved by both houses and signed by the President to complete the FY 2019 appropriations process for these agencies.

Also on June 5, the House of Representatives passed HR 1026 on a voice vote. HR 1026, the North Country National Scenic Trail Route Adjustment Act, moves the NCT in Minnesota to the Superior Hiking Trail and the Kekekabic and Border Route Trails from the current authorized route through nearly 100 miles of various black spruce and tamarack bogs. The bill also extends the NCT eastward from Lake Champlain into Vermont to connect with the Long Trail and the Appalachian Trail.  The North Country Trail Association has been working through several iterations for 10 years to get Congress to make these beneficial changes in the route of the North Country National Scenic Trail. A similar bill awaits action by the Senate.


Congress Begins Fiscal Year 2019 Appropriations Process (5/23/2018)

The House of Representatives Interior Appropriations Subcommittee has “marked up” the bill to fund the Interior Department agencies, U.S. Forest Service, and several other “related agencies” for Fiscal Year 2019. Most of the details of the funding being proposed are not yet available, but several have been released. These include appropriating $360 million from the Land & Water Conservation Fund for land acquisition by the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Forest Service. The specific projects this money would fund have not been disclosed. The amount proposed is $65 million less than Congress appropriated at the end of March for Fiscal Year 2018, but it is the largest amount proposed by the House for Land & Water Conservation Fund land acquisitions in years.

The House Interior Appropriations bill also proposes to increase by $50 million the funding for the National Park Service to operate the National Park System (including the National Trails System). The bill must be approved by the full Appropriations Committee and voted on by the House before this first half of the annual appropriations process is completed.


Two National Scenic and Historic Trail Bills Advance in Congress (4/25/2018)

Two bills making significant changes in two national trails have advanced in the House of Representatives. A hearing was recently held by the Public Lands Subcommittee of the House Natural Resources Committee on HR 3045. HR 3045, sponsored by Rep. Luke Messer (R-IN) and others, implements the recommendation of the National Park Service Feasibility Study to extend the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail from Wood River, IL up the Ohio River to Pittsburgh, PA. This extension of the trail would include preparations made by Lewis and Clark to gather the needed supplies and men for the expedition of the Corps of Discovery. If enacted by Congress, this extension would also bring Indiana into the National Trails System, the only state currently without a national scenic or historic trail.

Also recently, the House Natural Resources Committee held a markup session on HR 1026, the North Country National Scenic Trail Route Adjustment Act. This bill, sponsored by Rep. Rick Nolan (D-MN), other members of the Minnesota delegation, and other representatives from the seven states through which the North Country National Scenic Trail passes, moves the trail in Minnesota to the Superior Hiking Trail and the Kekekabic and Border Route Trails from the current authorized route through nearly 100 miles of various black spruce and tamarack bogs. The bill also extends the trail eastward from Lake Champlain into Vermont to connect with the Long Trail and the Appalachian Trail. The House Natural Resources Committee recommended HR 1026 for passage by the House of Representatives. The North Country Trail Association has been working through several iterations for 10 years to get Congress to make these beneficial changes in the route of the North Country National Scenic Trail.


PNTS Statement on the $1.3 Trillion Omnibus FY 2018 Appropriations Bill (3/30/2018)

The Partnership for the National Trails System thanks Congress for finally appropriating the money to fund Federal agencies—including our partners in the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, U.S Forest Service, and the Federal Highway Administration—through the end of Federal Fiscal Year 2018 (September 30th). Within the $1.3 Trillion Omnibus FY 2018 Appropriations Bill, Congress has appropriated $425 million for acquisition of critical lands for conservation and recreation through the Land & Water Conservation Funda modest increase over the funding provided for FY 2017. This funding includes $18.359 million to buy land along three of the national historic trails and four of the national scenic trails.

Congress appropriated $2,298,397,000 for the National Park Service to operate the National Park System, including 23 of the national scenic and historic trails. This is an increase of $54.046 million over the funding provided for 2017.

In recognition of the 50th Anniversary of the National Trails System this year Congress, provided this direction: “National Trails System—In preparation for the National Trails System’s 50-year anniversary in 2018, the Committees urge the [Park] Service to make funding the construction and maintenance of national trails a priority.”  It remains to be seen how the National Park Service will carry out this guidance.

Congress also appropriated $80 million for the U.S. Forest Service to build and maintain the 158,000 miles of trails on the national forests, including the five national scenic trails and one national historic trail that it administers and sections of 17 other national trails within national forests. The funding provided for 2018 is $2.47 million more than Congress provided to the Forest Service for the trails in 2017 and is the first increase in trail funding in three or more years.

Additionally in the Omnibus FY 2018 Appropriations Bill, Congress has also permanently reauthorized the Federal Lands Transfer Facilitation Act (FLTFA)authorizing the Bureau of Land Management to sell surplus Federal land and use the money gained from these sales to buy land for conservation and recreation purposes.

Congress also finally passed a comprehensive Wildfire Suppression funding program that should enable the U.S. Forest Service and other agencies to pay the increasingly greater costs of suppressing wildfires and eliminate the need to “borrow” funds from other programs to do so.

We applaud Congress for finally resolving these several long-standing issues, but we are disappointed that Congress did not re-authorize the Land & Water Conservation Fund, which expires on September 30, 2018.


Congress Works to Finish 2018 Funding, Trump Proposes Drastic Funding Cuts for 2019 (2/28/2018)

While Congress works to complete the Appropriations Bill to fund the Federal government for the second half of Fiscal Year 2018, the Trump Administration released its proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2019 on February 12. As it did last year, this budget proposes to drastically cut funding for trails and the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF).

Once again, the Administration proposes to slash by $65 million the one account that funds work on the 158,000 miles of trails in the national forests, including the National Scenic and Historic Trails. The budget proposes to provide only $12 million for the U.S. Forest Service to use to maintain and upgrade all these miles of trail.

Similarly, but less drastically, the proposed FY 2019 budget proposes to cut $1.256 million from the $13.192 million projected to be provided for FY 2018 for the 23 National Scenic and Historic Trails administered by the National Park Service. This cut of 9.5% will significantly reduce the money available to continue existing and initiate new important programs, projects, and activities along the Park Service’s National Trails.

Since the budget for the Bureau of Land Management does not have any account specifically funding trails, it is, as usual, a mystery how the National Scenic and Historic Trails administered and managed by the Bureau will fare. However, proposed cuts of $16.5 million in the funding for national monuments and wilderness areas (the two components of the National Conservation Lands System with specific funding accounts) suggest that funding for the trails will be reduced, also.

The most drastic cuts have been proposed for the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). The FY 2019 budget provides no funding for the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Forest Service to purchase lands for conservation and recreation. The budget further cripples Federal land acquisition by proposing to rescind $42 million of already appropriated but unspent LWCF money from all four of these agencies.

All of these funding cuts are rather puzzling and ironic considering how Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke and other Administration leaders have emphasized the need to provide more access to public lands for hunting, fishing, and other forms of recreation. Increased access is not accomplished by cutting the funding for the trails and land acquisition that are the ways to enter and travel our public lands.

For 2018, Congress ignored similarly drastic funding cuts for trails and the LWCF proposed by the Administration and is working from levels of funding provided for FY 2017 in preparing the FY 2018 Appropriations Bill. It is likely that Congress will ignore the proposed drastic cuts for FY 2019 too, but it is essential that constituents remind their senators and representatives how important robust funding for our public lands, trails, and the Land & Water Conservation Fund is to our quality of life and our natural and cultural heritage as Americans.


Congress Punts 2018 Appropriations Once Again, Again (1/31/2018)

After a three-day partial shutdown of most government agencies earlier in January, Congress has once again passed a continuing resolution to fund the agencies rather than completing the appropriations to fund their operations for the rest of Fiscal Year 2018. This continuing resolution funds the government agencies at Fiscal Year 2017 levels through Thursday, February 8. This practice of delaying completing this necessary legislation in a timely way each year seems to have become the “new normal” for Congress. Watch for Congress to repeat the process in February with another short term continuing resolution. The punts are getting shorter — covering less ground.


Congress Punts 2018 Appropriations Once Again (12/27/2017)

Rather than completing the appropriations to fund the operations of the federal government for the rest of Fiscal Year 2018, Congress has once again passed a continuing resolution to fund the agencies through January 19, 2018. While this continuing resolution allows the agencies to continue spending at the level appropriated by Congress for Fiscal Year 2017, it prevents them from entering into year-long agreements with nonprofit organizations and other entities to fund collaborative work. Until about five years ago, Congress regularly completed the 12 annual appropriations bills to fund the various government agencies before the beginning of the new fiscal year on October 1st each year. The new practice of delaying completing this necessary legislation in a timely way each year seems to have become the “new normal” for Congress. Watch for Congress to repeat the process in January with another short term continuing resolution.


LWCF Reauthorization Bill Sponsored by Majority of Representatives (12/27/2017)

The bipartisan bill HR 502 to permanently reauthorize the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) is now co-sponsored by 218 members of the House of Representatives. This is just over one-half of the members of the House and marks a new “high” in demonstrated support for this essential conservation program in Congress. The LWCF is authorized by Congress through September 30, 2018 and must be reauthorized before then to keep enabling the federal land managing agencies to purchase inholdings in national parks, wildlife refuges, national forests, and national trails as they become available from willing sellers. The LWCF is funded through payments for leases to drill for oil and gas in the outer continental shelf of the United States.


Senate Interior Appropriations Bill Provides $400 Million for LWCF (11/30/2017)

A few days before Thanksgiving, the Senate Appropriations Committee released its version of the Interior Appropriations Bill for Fiscal Year 2018. The bill includes $400 million from the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) – the same amount as Congress appropriated for 2017 – for the Federal land managing agencies to buy critical conservation land from willing sellers. The Senate bill provides $125 million more for LWCF acquisitions than the bill passed by the House of Representatives. The $400 million in the Senate bill includes $19,359,000 to acquire land along the Appalachian, Continental Divide, North Country, Pacific Crest, Captain John Smith Chesapeake, Lewis & Clark, Oregon, California, and Overmountain Victory National Trails.

The Senate Interior Appropriations Bill also proposes to provide $81,553,000 for the U.S. Forest Service to build and maintain trails in the national forests. This amount is about $4 million more than Congress appropriated for Forest Service trails for 2017 and the House has included in its 2018 Interior Bill.

Before Congress can complete resolving differences between the House and Senate versions of the Interior and other appropriations bills for Fiscal Year 2018, it must pass a resolution to continue funding for the federal agencies beyond December 8th when the current authorized funding runs out.


National Scenic Trails Parity Act Introduced in Senate (10/30/2017)

On October 26th, Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and nine of her colleagues reintroduced the National Scenic Trails Parity Act – S. 2015. This bill provides the same level of recognition and support for the Ice Age, New England, and North Country National Scenic Trails as the Appalachian, Potomac Heritage, and Natchez Trace National Scenic Trails have received for decades as Units of the National Park System. All six of these national scenic trails are administered by the National Park Service.

Without the parity provided by the new legislation the three affected trails authorized decades ago by Congress will continue to not receive the full range of support and recognition provided by the Park Service for the units of the National Park System. Beyond recognition on National Park System maps and in National Park Service publications, the Parity Act will make the three trails eligible for maintenance and other funding just as the other three Park Service administered trails have been for decades.

The bipartisan legislation is cosponsored by Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).

A companion version of the National Scenic Trails Parity ActHR 1424 – was introduced in the House of Representatives earlier this year by Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr. (R-WI-5), Rep. Gwen Moore (D-WI-4), Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-WI-6), Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI-3), and Rep. Richard M. Nolan (D-MN-8).


House Passes FY 2018 Interior Appropriations Bill – Funding for LWCF and National Trails (9/26/2017)

In mid-September, after returning to Washington, D.C. from their August Recess, the members of the House of Representatives passed legislation to fund the government for Fiscal Year 2018, including the Interior Appropriations bill. The House Interior bill provides $275 million from the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) for land acquisition projects by the four federal land managing agencies. This amount is $125 million less than Congress appropriated for LWCF for the current fiscal year, but considerably more than the Administration requested in its FY 2018 Budget.

The House Interior Appropriations bill also provides the same level of funding for administration and management by the National Park Service of 23 national scenic and historic trails as was appropriated for FY 2017: $12.3 million. Funding for the national trails administered and managed by the Bureau of Land Management is set at $5.95 million, about $400,000 less than Congress provided for FY 2017. Similarly, the House bill provides $75.553 million for Trail Maintenance and Construction for the U.S. Forest Service, $1.977 million below the fiscal year 2017 enacted level and $62,853,000 above the Administration’s FY 2018 budget request.

The Senate has not yet acted on its version of the FY 2018 Interior Appropriations Bill.


Interior Secretary Zinke Recommends Reducing Size of Several National Monuments (9/26/2017)

In an early September memo to the President, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke recommended reducing the size of several National Monuments designated since 1996 and revising the types of activities to be permitted in them and other Monuments. Secretary Zinke has recommended reducing the area protected by these National Monuments by an unspecified amount of land: Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante in Utah, Gold Butte in Nevada, and Cascade-Siskiyou in Oregon.

Asserting that “traditional uses of the land such as grazing, timber production, mining, fishing, hunting, recreation, and other cultural uses are unnecessarily restricted” on these and other National Monuments, Secretary Zinke recommends revising the Proclamations of these Monuments to allow these “traditional uses” so as to benefit the local communities near them. For the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument in Maine, restoration of timber production is recommended.

More than 2.8 million comments were submitted by the public during the recent review period with over 90 percent of them supporting no change in the status or size of any of the 27 National Monuments being reviewed. It is not known what the President plans to do with Interior Secretary Zinke’s recommendations for the National Monuments.


Interior Secretary Zinke’s Report of National Monuments (8/30/2017)

On August 24th, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke sent a report to the President of the 120-day public review of an assessment of 27 National Monuments designated since 1996, all but one of which encompass more than 100,000 acres. The assessment was ordered by President Trump in late April. More than 2.8 million comments were submitted by the public with over 90% of them supporting no change in the status or size of any of the 27 National Monuments.

In his report, Secretary Zinke recommended that President Trump redraw the boundaries of a “handful” of national monuments but did not recommend the elimination of any sites. Secretary Zinke stated, “The recommendations I sent to the president on national monuments will maintain federal ownership of all federal land and protect the land under federal environmental regulations, and also provide a much needed change for the local communities who border and rely on these lands for hunting and fishing, economic development, traditional uses, and recreation.”

Secretary Zinke had previously dismissed reviews of six monuments without recommending any alternations to boundaries or management plans: the Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve in Idaho, Hanford Reach National Monument in Washington state, Canyons of the Ancients National Monument in Colorado, Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument in Montana, Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument in Arizona, and Sand to Snow National Monument in California.


Proposed LWCF Appropriations in 2018 Bill (8/29/2017)

The House Appropriations Committee is recommending appropriating $275 million from the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) to be used for acquiring land for conservation and recreation for Fiscal Year 2018. This is $125 million less than Congress appropriated for Fiscal Year 2017. During the Committee’s markup of the 2018 Bill, Appropriations Committee Chairman Rodney Frelinghuysen and Interior Subcommittee Chairman Ken Calvert both stated that they are willing to seek greater funding for LWCF in deliberations with the Senate later in the appropriations process. The House and Senate are expected to work toward passing the 2018 Appropriations bills in September after Labor Day.

Included in the recommended $275 million for the LWCF is funding for land acquisitions along or adjacent to these National Trails:

Bureau of Land Management

  • Mojave Trails National Monument CA – Old Spanish NHT: $1.4M
  • North Platte River Special Recreation Management Area WY – Oregon NHT: $1.3M

US Fish & Wildlife Service 

  • Cherry Valley National Wildlife Refuge PA – Appalachian NST: $500,000

National Park Service

  • Appalachian NST – NY: $2M
  • North Country NST – MI: $3.472M

US Forest Service

  • Trinity Divide CA – Pacific Crest NST: $5M

Total: $13,672,000

If Congress appropriates $400 million for LWCF projects as it did for Fiscal Year 2017 then projects along the Continental Divide NST and Overmountain Victory NHT could be funded.


2018 Interior Appropriations Bill (7/31/2017)

In mid-July the House Appropriations Committee prepared the Interior Appropriations bill to fund the Department of Interior agencies, the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), and the Environmental Protection Agency for Fiscal Year 2018.  Rejecting many of the drastic funding cuts proposed by the Trump Administration, the Committee proposes maintaining funding for the National Park Service (NPS), USFS, and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) trails programs either at or slightly less than the funding Congress provided for 2017.  The funding for the NPS to administer 23 of the National Scenic and Historic Trails and to run the Volunteers-in-Parks and Challenge Cost Share Programs is continued at the 2017 level while $75,553,000 is recommended for the USFS to maintain 155,000 miles of trails (including administering 6 National Scenic and Historic Trails) in the national forests.  This is a reduction of $1,977,000 from the funding provided for 2017, but much greater than the $12. 7 million proposed by the administration.  Similarly, $35.8 million is recommended for the BLM’s National Landscape Conservation System, a reduction of $1 million from 2017.

In rejecting the Administration’s proposal to eliminate funding for federal land acquisition, the House Appropriations Committee recommends providing $275 million from the Land & Water Conservation Fund to fund conservation land acquisition by the NPS, USFS, US Fish & Wildlife Service, and BLM and acquisition of easements through the Forest Legacy Program.  This funding level, $125 million less than the amount provided for 2017, includes money to acquire land along several of the National Scenic and Historic Trails.


Drastic Cuts Proposed for National Scenic and Historic Trail Funding (6/30/2017)

The National Scenic and Historic Trails administered and managed by the U.S Forest Service are funded from the agency’s Trails Account (CMTL).  For FY 2017 Congress appropriated $77.383 million for that account. The proposed Trump Budget for FY 2018 provides just $12.7 million for the Forest Service to maintain over 155,000 miles of trails—a reduction of 84%!  If the Forest Service allocates a proportionate amount of funds for the National Trails at this funding level only $1.268 million will be available for them.

Read our testimony here.


FY18 Proposed LWCF Budget Cuts (5/31/2017)

The President’s FY18 Budget Proposal, released on May 23rd, completely eviscerates the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF).  These drastic and dire funding cuts come across all programs, not just the federal side. Overall, the Administration’s budget would gut LWCF by 84%, and up to 89% for some agencies. Furthermore, certain components like the Forest Legacy Program would be zeroed out entirely.

Though the numbers vary, except for the American Battlefield Protection Program (state and local grants for battlefield protection, not National Battlefields like Gettysburg, Fredericksburg-Spotslyvania, etc.) these funding levels cover administrative costs only—NO projects, NO grants to states.  There are also NO recreation access line items in any of the proposed agency budgets.

The breakout for LWCF funding is as follows:

FEDERAL AGENCIES

  • Bureau of Land Management: $3.6M, 89% cut to enacted level
  • US Fish & Wildlife Service: $17.051M, 66% cut to enacted level
  • National Park Service: $14.8M, 65% cut to enacted level
  • US Forest Service: $7.0M, 88% cut to enacted level 
  • OVS: $10.0M, 9% cut to enacted level

STATE AND LOCAL GRANTS 

  • CESCF (Sec. 6): $0 for the land acquisition accounts, 100% cut to enacted level
  • Highlands: $0, 100% cut to enacted level
  • Stateside:  $3.043M in NPS appropriations, 97% cut to enacted level
                       $90M in mandatory funding* (see note below)—this would be an 18% cut to enacted level
  • American Battlefield Protection Program: $8.481M, 15% cut to enacted level
  • Forest Legacy Program:  $0, 100% cut to enacted level

Total LWCF: $64 million, 84% cut to enacted level

The Trump Administration’s proposed FY18 Budget also substantially cuts funding for America’s 30 National Scenic and Historic Trails as shown here:

AGENCY FY17 FUNDING PROPOSED FY18 DECREASE

  • National Park Service: $12.913 million $12.150 million – $897,000
  • Bureau of Land Management: $6.358 million $5.95 million – $406,000
  • U.S. Forest Service: $7.925 million ??**

*There is a change to the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act (GOMESA), which was to provide the LWCF State and Local Assistance Program (LWCF stateside grants) with mandatory funding beginning this year.  In the President’s Budget proposal released today, GOMESA’s allocations to the states are repealed but replaced with mandatory funding for LWCF stateside at the level of $90M for FY18, rising to $125M in FY22 and continuing at that level thereafter.  Even though appropriations for stateside are cut to practically nothing, these grants receive funding through a separate mechanism.

** = The National Scenic and Historic Trails administered and managed by the U.S Forest Service are funded from the agency’s Trails Account (CMTL).  For FY 2017 Congress appropriated $77.383 million for that account. The proposed Trump Budget for FY 2018 provides just $12.7 million for the Forest Service to maintain over 155,000 miles of trails—a reduction of 84%!  If the Forest Service allocates a proportionate amount of funds for the National Trails at this funding level only $1.268 million will be available for them.


LWCF Legislation in the 115th Congress (4/29/2017)

The Fiscal Year 2018 “skinny budget” released by the Trump Administration this spring implies the intention to drastically decrease funding of the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) compared to the $450 million Congress appropriated for Fiscal Year 2016.  It also implies the intent to cut the overall budgets of the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, US Forest Service, and US Fish & Wildlife Service from 12 to 25 percent.

Three bills—H.R. 502, S. 569, and S. 896—have been introduced to permanently re-authorize the Land & Water Conservation Fund. While these bills are receiving bi-partisan support with many members of Congress co-sponsoring them, more co-sponsors are needed to demonstrate the overwhelming support for and value of the Land & Water Conservation Fund.

Current Legislation in the 115th Congress


An Executive Update on the Land and Water Conservation Fund (3/29/2017)

The Fiscal Year 2018 “skinny budget” recently released by the Trump Administration implies the intention to drastically decrease funding of the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) below the $450 million Congress appropriated for Fiscal Year 2016.

Meanwhile, support for the Land & Water Conservation Fund continues to increase in Congress with 205 Members of the House of Representatives—the most ever—signing a “Dear Colleague” letter to the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman requesting strong funding for the Fund for Fiscal Year 2018.  A similar letter supporting LWCF funding for the National Trails System (NTS) was signed by 68 Members of the House.  Both letters are bipartisan and the Representatives who signed them deserve our thanks for their consistent support for the Land & Water Conservation Fund.

View House of Representatives LWCF Dear Colleague Letter
View House of Representatives LWCF NTS Dear Colleague Letter


A Year End Congressional Update (12/29/2016)

The 114th Congress adjourned in early December after passing another Continuing Resolution to fund the Federal government agencies at the Fiscal Year 2016 levels until April 28, 2017.  The appropriations for Fiscal Year 2017 are to be completed by the 115th Congress sometime next Spring.  The 114th Congress left this important work for the National Trails System unfinished:

  • Re-authorization of the Land & Water Conservation Fund
  • Re-authorization of the Historic Preservation Fund
  • Re-authorization of the Federal Land Transfer Facilitation Act to authorize the Bureau of Land Management to sell surplus land and use the proceeds to buy lands to fill in management blocks in the several checkerboards of public/private land in the west
  • A method for funding wildfire suppression costs that will relieve the annual operating budget of the Forest Service from bearing the majority of these costs
  • Authorization of the several adjustments to the route of the North Country National Scenic Trail in Minnesota and extending into Vermont.

The Partnership for the National Trails System will work with many allies to get bills introduced in the 115th Congress to accomplish these important actions.


A Congressional Update on the Land and Water Conservation Fund (9/29/2016)

Work continues to convince Congress to permanently re-authorize the Land & Water Conservation Fund via several pieces of legislation under consideration.  Two bills in the House of Representatives – HR 1814 sponsored by Representative Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) has 210 sponsors and HR 4151 sponsored by Representative Mike Simpson (R-ID) as an all Republican bill has 13 sponsors – would make the LWCF a permanent program as it now operates.  Senate and House members of the conference committee are working to reconcile the energy bills passed by both houses of Congress and are also working to include re-authorization of the LWCF in the final bill.  The Senate version of the Energy Bill – S. 2012 – includes the same language that Congressman Simpson used for HR 4151.

There is still hope that one or several of these bills will be adopted by Congress during its post election “Lame Duck” session.  Supporters of the Land & Water Conservation Fund should continue to express that support.


A Congressional Update on the Land and Water Conservation Fund (6/29/2016)

Congress is currently working on legislation to fund land protection projects with Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) money for Fiscal Year 2017 and on legislation that could permanently reauthorize this landmark land conservation program.  The House and Senate have each written their FY 2017 Interior Appropriations bills to fund the work of the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, Environmental Protection Agency and a number of other federal agencies and programs.  The House proposes to spend $322 million for LWCF projects, while the Senate proposes to spend $400 million.  These amounts are significant decreases from the $450 million Congress has provided for LWCF projects for FY 2016 and are less than half of the $900 million requested by the President. At the proposed level of funding only a handful of National Trails System land acquisition projects would be funded.

The Senate and House Energy and Natural Resources Committees are also in discussions to reconcile their two versions of the Energy Policy Modernization Act.  The version passed by the Senate includes permanent reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund, as well as reauthorization of the Federal Land Transfer Facilitation Act (FLTFA) to enable the Bureau of Land Management to sell surplus land and use the money obtained to buy conservation lands, and the North Country National Scenic Trail Route Adjustment Act to relocate the Trail in Minnesota and extend it eastward to connect with the Long and Appalachian Trails in Vermont. If the Conference Committee can produce a bill reconciling the differences between the two versions that bill will go back to each House to be approved. With the longer than normal summer Congressional Recess rapidly approaching it is likely final decisions on these important bills will not be made in each House until fall.


The Senate Passes Energy Policy Modernization Act (4/20/2016)

The United States Senate has passed S. 2012 85-12, which includes permanent reauthorization of the Land & Water Conservation Fund.  Specific details, provided by the Land & Water Conservation Fund Coalition, can be found below:

The Senate just voted for final passage of S. 2012, the Energy Policy Modernization Act—which contains permanent reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund as part of a bipartisan compromise provision negotiated by Chairman Lisa Murkowski and Ranking Member Maria Cantwell.

This is an historic victory for LWCF, the first time permanent authorization has passed the full Senate. Before passing the bill, the Senate voted last night on several amendments including the anti-LWCF Lankford amendment, which was decisively defeated by a vote of 63-34.  


Obama’s New Budget Proposal Includes Full Funding for the LWCF (2/4/2016)

The Partnership for the National Trails System applauds President Obama’s continued commitment to fully funding the Land & Water Conservation Fund as reflected by the Federal land preservation projects announced in the FY 2017 Budget.  Projects included along some of America’s 30 National Scenic and Historic Trails will provide increased access for healthful outdoor recreation for millions of people while helping to preserve critical wildlife habitat, sensitive historical and cultural sites, and the integrity of ecosystems and watersheds.  The National Trails link together many of Americans favorite national parks, wildlife refuges and Wilderness Areas and many major cities, as well.

Learn more


 

Debates Begin on Energy Policy Modernization Act (EMPA) (1/27/2016)

This week, the Senate has begun to debate the Energy Policy Modernization Act (EPMA), which passed through the Energy and Natural Resources Committee in July of last year.  This package includes the bipartisan compromise reached by Chairman Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-WA) to permanently reauthorize LWCF while making modest reforms to the program.  The Murkowski-Cantwell LWCF proposal has passed through the Committee twice by a wide bipartisan margin.  This agreement is a major improvement on the three-year reauthorization of the LWCF included in the FY 2016 Omnibus Appropriations Bill passed in December.

Already, this important agreement is being attacked.  Senators Lee, (R-UT), Barasso, (R -WY), and several others have introduced amendments to remove or substantially change the LWCF agreement in this bill.

Please contact your Senators and ask them to oppose any amendments that strike or weaken the Murkowski-Cantwell agreement on LWCF included in the EPMA. Talking points are as follows:

The Murkowski-Cantwell agreement contained in EPMA would permanently reauthorize LWCF and make the following changes to the program

  • A 40%-40%-20% split of LWCF funding between federal purposes (i.e. federal agency projects through NPS, BLM, USFS and USFWS), state purposes (grants through the NPS State and Local Assistance Program, the Forest Legacy Program, the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Program/Section 6, and the American Battlefield Protection Program), and flexible funding, all subject to appropriator discretion. This closely mirrors the distribution of LWCF appropriations in recent years, including the overall distribution in the FY16 omnibus.
  • Agencies must take into account the following factors when choosing projects: management efficiencies, management cost savings, geographic distribution, significance of the acquisition, urgency of the acquisition, threats to the integrity of the land to be acquired, and the recreational value of the land.  These are similar to existing agency criteria, and would codify current practice.
  • Codification of the 1.5% sportsmen’s access provision that has been included in all proposed LWCF legislation for the last several years, endorsed by the LWCF Coalition.
  • Where feasible and appropriate, agencies should consider the use of conservation easements.

The agreement also creates a new National Park Maintenance and Revitalization Fund that is over and above LWCF—NOT taking authorized dollars away from LWCF—from Outer Continental Shelf energy revenues.

This agreement therefore addresses critical needs for our public lands on two fronts:

  1. Improving existing facilities and resources
  2. Protecting the integrity of those parks from incompatible development

Unlike various other proposals, this agreement addresses questions about reforming LWCF without causing major damage to the program’s core conservation mission or the diversity and flexibility of tools available to communities.


LWCF Reauthorized in FY Omnibus Appropriations Bill (12/16/2015)

Thanks to great work by a group of persistent Republican and Democrat Senators and Representatives the Omnibus FY 2016 Appropriations Bill prepared for approval by Congress reauthorizes the Land Water Conservation Fund until September 30, 2018 with the current authorities and potential funding of $900 million annually.  While those of us who have worked for years to secure permanent reauthorization of LWCF and guaranteed annual full funding of it are disappointed that Congress will extend it only for three years now, we will have a good start on working with Congressional champions to achieve permanent reauthorization over the next several years.

Congress is scheduled to vote on the Omnibus FY 2016 Appropriations Bill in the next several days.

Many thanks to all of you who contacted your members of Congress time and again urging them to reauthorize LWCF.  Please thank them for including this reauthorization in the FY 2016 Appropriations Bill.

Please also thank the members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees for allocating $450 million for LWCF land acquisition projects for 2016.  This funding is $143 million more than Congress has appropriated in each of the past two fiscal years.

Learn more about the specific National Scenic and Historic Trail projects that will be funded in 2016

Take Action (Updated 12/11/2015)

Congress is still negotiating the FY 2016 Omnibus Appropriations Bill and has set a new deadline of next Wednesday, December 16th to have the bill ready to fund the government for the rest of the fiscal year.  They will continue negotiating over this weekend.  Thanks to all of your good work and that of other advocates across the nation reauthorization of the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) is still under consideration to be included in the bill.

We need you to remind the Representatives and Senators you have already contacted and any you have not that LWCF must be reauthorized now — it does not need to be “fixed” or “reformed” — delaying action will, among the various detriments, threaten or deny our ability and our federal agency partners ability to close gaps and protect critical resources along the national scenic and historic trails.

ACT TODAY to remind Congress how vital the LWCF is for our trails and all the other public lands that preserve our natural, historic, and cultural heritage as Americans and provide outdoor recreation so beneficial to our health and the economies of countless communities across the Nation.

 LWCF Talking Points – (Source: Land & Water Conservation Fund Coalition)

Overall

  • Congress continues to debate a broad spending and tax package that will be completed in the coming days, and the future of the Land and Water Conservation Fund – including permanent reauthorization and funding – is part of those negotiations!
  • Clearly leaders in Congress are starting to hear the LWCF message, but with multiple issues and needs to be addressed in these final days, LWCF supporters in Congress must continue to speak up for LWCF so that it does not get left on the cutting room floor.
  • Congress just gave itself a 5 day extension to December 16 to finish its work.  Final negotiations are underway now – and LWCF MUST be included in that final legislation!
  • LWCF’s authorization should never have lapsed  on October 1st of this year, and Congress must take this opportunity to rectify that and protect America’s most important conservation program
  • LWCF is one of the most popular, bipartisan programs in Congress and should be renewed without delay
  • Ask for Members of Congress:  Please reiterate/urge leadership that permanent reauthorization and funding of LWCF is a top priority for you and that it must be a part of the final spending package that will be voted on in Congress in the coming days

LWCF works for American jobs and has broad bipartisan support

  • The outdoor recreation industry, governors, mayors, sportsmen, small business owners, conservation leaders, landowners, ranchers, farmers, and millions and millions of Americans are united in the push for permanent reauthorization and full funding of the Land and Water Conservation Fund because it works.  LWCF helps to keep the $646 billion recreation economy alive and serves to protect our National Parks and other public lands from being destroyed.
  • LWCF is universally popular and enjoys bipartisan support in Congress as it did from its origins when first envisioned by Eisenhower, advanced by JFK, and signed into law by LBJ. Given the chance, majorities in both the House and the Senate would vote today to reauthorize LWCF. And yet, inexplicably, Congress has allowed the lights to go out on LWCF for the first time in half a century.  SUPPORT AMERICAS BEST PARKS PROGRAM – IT PAYS FOR ITSELF AND SUPPORTS JOBS!

Why LWCF must be permanently funded and reauthorized now

    • LWCF’s authorization should never have lapsed in the first place, and Congress has an opportunity in these budget negotiations to right that wrong and finally provide the long term certainty that the program needs.
    • The current budget climate is unlikely to change anytime soon.  With a few staunch opponents of federal land acquisition emboldened by LWCF expiring and not being renewed, backed by those who oppose funding unauthorized programs on ideological grounds, the future of the program looks grim. Since LWCF expired, proposals have been submitted to drastically alter the program by diverting substantial funding to non-conservation purposes and capping successful programs at extremely low funding levels.  These proposals cannot be the answer for LWCF!
    • As a result of Congress’ inaction on reauthorization, LWCF’s funding will face unprecedented downward pressure in the future, and many important conservation projects will likely be in jeopardy.
    • All landowners have the right to see their land conserved if that is their wish, and deserve viable options for keeping working lands in production through easement sales.  LWCF is a program that works, with communities clamoring for access to funding through a multi-year process.  We must not allow that process to be further handicapped or cut off altogether by letting LWCF expiration to continue.”

 

Additional Resources: