REP Urges Full Funding of Land and Water Conservation Fund
Letter sent to GOP members of House Natural Resources Committee

July 12, 2010

Dear Member of Congress:

Republicans for Environmental Protection (REP) respectfully requests that you oppose any weakening amendments to the Land and Water Conservation Fund provision of the CLEAR Act (H.R. 3534) during Wednesday’s Natural Resources Committee markup.
 
The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) is the brainchild of a commission appointed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower to ensure that we balance the use of our natural resources with investment in conservation and stewardship. LWCF was established to be a dedicated source of revenue for preserving, developing and assuring access to outdoor recreation resources.
 
The benefits of LWCF are apparent in every state. The critical funding it has provided for open space is paying dividends in quality of life, health, and economic activity. LWCF investments also safeguard water supplies, reduce wildfire losses, and help prevent flooding.
 
Despite its popularity and effectiveness, however, the LWCF account has been raided to fund other programs, chronically underfunding its intended purpose. Over the past decade, Congress appropriated an average of only $313 million annually from the fund, far below the $900 million per year level authorized back in 1977.
 
The entrenched practice of raiding the LWCF account as a slush fund for unrelated programs is symptomatic of the lack of fiscal restraint that currently plagues Congress and our nation. Using accumulated LWCF revenues for their intended purpose would be a positive step towards restoring much needed discipline to our nation’s fiscal policy.
 
Funding for LWCF comes from royalties generated by offshore oil and gas leases—which have averaged almost $9 billion a year over the last five years. The current mess in the Gulf underscores why maintaining the balance envisioned by the Eisenhower commission is so important.
 
Recent polling shows that 86 percent of voters – including 83 percent of Republicans – support using offshore oil and gas royalties for protecting open space and expanding outdoor recreation opportunities.
 
Enactment of full and permanent funding for LWCF would be a historic achievement for conservation and for fiscal responsibility. Whatever the ultimate outcome of the underlying bill, it is important that LWCF receive the bipartisan support it deserves.
 
Thank you for considering our views on this important matter.

Sincerely,

David Jenkins, REP Vice President for Government and Political Affairs