U.S. Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) successfully quashed efforts in the U.S. Senate to deplete the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), which he and U.S. Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) want to see fully funded in a reauthorization that must happen before its scheduled Sept. 30 expiration.
Sen. Burr introduced an amendment to strike a provision from the federal government rescissions package, the Spending Cuts to Expired and Unnecessary Programs Act, H.R. 3, which proposed cutting $16 million already promised to specific LWCF programs. The Senate on June 20 voted 48-50 against H.R. 3, with two Republicans – Sen. Burr and U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) – joining Democrats against the measure.
“Today’s vote was about keeping our promises,” said Sen. Burr, chairman of the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. “Funded exclusively by royalties, the Land and Water Conservation Fund costs taxpayers nothing and benefits them entirely.”
The LWCF, one of the nation’s oldest and most successful conservation programs, uses zero taxpayer dollars. Under the U.S. Department of the Interior’s National Park Service, the fund invests earnings from offshore oil and gas leasing to finance state and federal work.
“It was never meant to be a piggy bank,” the senator said. “I urge my colleagues to support the great work carried out by the LWCF – not just for Americans today, but for future generations.”
Sens. Burr and Daines joined Mark Tercek, CEO of the Nature Conservancy, and several members in Congress – including U.S. Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Michael Bennet (D-CO), and U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY) – during a June 20 press conference in which they called for full funding in a permanent reauthorization of the LWCF.
“Since I first came to Congress, I have been committed to permanently reauthorizing the LWCF,” Sen. Daines said during the press conference outside the U.S. Capitol building. “The LWCF does not cost taxpayers a penny and is critical to Montana jobs and protecting our outdoor way of life.”
Sen. Daines added that, “Our children and grandchildren are counting on us to preserve America’s outdoor heritage – we cannot let funding for this important bipartisan program expire.”
Sen. Burr also that day took the cause to Facebook where he pointed out, “We’ve got a little more than 100 days before this great program expires, but Congress seems to work best on a deadline! Oh, and did I mention that LWCF costs taxpayers nothing? #letsgettoit #SaveLWCF”
Additionally, Sen. Burr on Apr. 7, 2017 introduced S. 896, which would permanently reauthorize the LWCF. The bipartisan S. 896 has 12 cosponsors, including Sens. Daines, Collins, and Bennet, who are among the original cosponsors. The bill is under consideration by the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
S. 896 is the Senate version of H.R. 502, introduced in the U.S. House on Jan. 12, 2017 by U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ). H.R. 502 has 228 cosponsors and has been referred to the U.S. House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Power and Oceans.