Assuring $900 Million per year for Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF)

A Message from Doug Levy, WRPA Lobbyist 

A quick report on a pretty historic vote in the U.S. House on Thursday, July 23, 2020—including great news for the sustainable funding of the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). By an overwhelming 310 - 107 vote, the House approved S. 3422, known as the “Great American Outdoors Act.”  The legislation locks in a sustained $900 million per year funding level for LWCF, and additionally allocates $9.5 billion over the next five years to help address M&O backlogs on National parks and other federal lands.

The measure still needs to be signed into law by the President, who has said he will sign it—it received strong bi-partisan approvals in both the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House. Here is coverage of the U.S. House action, first posted online by the Seattle Times Thursday night and showing up on page 1 of print editions this morning: https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/environment/washington-state-expected-to-get-millions-more-for-parks-forests-as-congress-approves-conservation-bill/

One thing I would stress: Please don’t forget to take a minute to convey a major “thank you” to U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and her staff—she has absolutely been a driving force and leader on this one. Be sure to thank your House Member(s) as well—Congresswoman DelBene has had an active role and Congressman Kilmer spoke on the House Floor, just to name a couple within the Washington Congressional Delegation.

As a final and positive note, I was part of an event last night with Governor Inslee, during which he underscored, in no uncertain terms, his desire to propose one of the most robust capital budgets ever for 2021-23 as a way to fund outdoor recreation and overall infrastructure needs across Washington State and as a jobs/stimulus measure. That is very consistent with earlier reports I’ve shared with you all—and very encouraging as well. As always, let me know of any questions—thanks!

Doug Levy
Owner
Outcomes By Levy, LLC
[email protected]