Full funding of Land Water Conservation Fund passes key Senate hurdle

A key Senate panel has voted to fully and permanently fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), a move that conservation groups see as a significant victory. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources committee voted Tuesday morning to permanently authorize and completely fund the program, which was established in 1964 to help with outdoor projects on public lands. The bill passed with bipartisan support out of the committee and now faces a full floor vote. The LWCF, which was permanently reauthorized this spring, receives most of its revenue from on- and offshore oil and gas drilling. The House Natural Resources Committee in June passed a bipartisan bill that, if signed into law, would dedicate $900 million of annual royalty funds to LWCF. Members on both sides of the aisle celebrated the move, calling it an important step to continue to invest in public lands. Conservation groups called the passage of LWCF permanent funding a crucial step.  “Fully and permanently funding the Land and Water Conservation Fund keeps a promise to the American people, that this important and effective conservation tool will be available for future generations,” added Kameran Onley, director of U.S. government relations at The Nature Conservancy...MORE

Here is what the bill, S. 1081, actually says:

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. Short title.

This Act may be cited as the “Land and Water Conservation Fund Permanent Funding Act”.

SEC. 2. Permanent full funding of the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

(a) In general.—Section 200303 of title 54, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:

Ҥ 200303. Availability of funds

“(a) In general.—For fiscal year 2020 and each fiscal year thereafter, amounts deposited in the Fund under section 200302 shall be made available for expenditure, without further appropriation or fiscal year limitation, to carry out the purposes of the Fund (including accounts and programs made available from the Fund under the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015 (Public Law 113–235; 128 Stat. 2130)). (emphasis mine)

See the language indented and underlined by me. What does this mean? Under current law dollars for federal land acquisition must compete annually with other federal programs. When Trump signs this bill into law, dollars for federal land acquisition will no longer have to compete - they will be on automatic pilot - $900 million each year must be spent on land acquisition.

What about programs to provide for our national defense? They must still compete, which means Republicans place a higher priority on government acquisition of private property.

What about funding research to find a cure for cancer or certain childhood diseases? They must still compete, which means Republicans place a higher priority on having less private property and more government owned and managed property than they do on the 600,000 people who die of cancer each year.

Well, what about the fact the feds can't take of the lands they already own (29 percent of the total land area in the U.S.) and they have billions of dollars of deferred maintenance. The National Park Service alone has $12 billion in deferred maintenance which includes "bridges, tunnels, paved parking areas,  paved roadways, buildings, housing, campgrounds, trails, waste water systems, water systems, unpaved roads, unpaved parking areas, utility systems, dams, constructed waterways, marinas, aviation systems, railroads, ships, monuments, fortifications, towers, interpretive media, and amphitheaters."

What do the Republicans say about that? They have an answer: SPEND MORE MONEY!

The same Senate committee on the same day approved S. 500, the “Restore Our Parks Act”, which states in part:

“(b) Establishment.—There is established in the Treasury of the United States a fund, to be known as the ‘National Park Service Legacy Restoration Fund’.

“(c) Deposits.—

“(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in paragraph (2), for each of fiscal years 2019 through 2023, there shall be deposited in the Fund an amount equal to 50 percent of all energy development revenues due and payable to the United States from oil, gas, coal, or alternative or renewable energy development on Federal land and water that would otherwise be credited, covered, or deposited as miscellaneous receipts under Federal law.

“(d) Availability of funds.—Amounts deposited in the Fund shall be available to the Secretary without further appropriation or fiscal year limitation. (emphasis mine).

 Will they raise your taxes to pay for this? Yes, but in a round-about way. These funds were deposited in the U.S treasury, and were on the income side of the ledger.  Now they will be spent on parking lots, towers, amphitheaters, etc.,and will go on the spending side of the ledger and thereby increase our national debt. Congress must pay the interest on our national debt each year, and that is funded by taxpayer dollars. They count on you not noticing this round-about way of dealing with your tax dollars.

So there you have it. Congress places a higher priority on federal land grabs and housing for Park Service employees than they do on our national defense or curing cancer.

Do you still think the enviros aren't calling the shots on Capitol Hill?