LWCF Overwhelmingly Passes Both Houses of Congress

The U.S. Senate and House of Representatives is overwhelmingly in support of permanently reauthorizing the expired Land and Water Conservation Fund.

The Natural Resources Management Act, a public lands package that includes LWCF, passed the Senate (92-8) and the House (363-62) last week. The vote reflected the strong bipartisan support that land and water conservation enjoys across the country. The bill will now be sent to the White House where it will likely be signed by the president.

If passed, the bill would become the most significant public lands legislation enacted since the 1970s. The LWCF directs funds generated by offshore oil and gas leasing to land and water conservation projects at the local, state, and federal levels. In addition to permanent funding, the act would add more than a million acres of Wilderness, protect wildlife habitat across the country, promote recreational access, and more. The LWCF could also help finance EVLT’s conservation initiatives in Eagle County.

Conservation has long been a bipartisan initiative. The momentum of the Natural Resources Management Act is strong reminder that the protection of our lands and rivers is an American priority.

View the bill’s progress here.