Land and Water Conservation Fund

Why important ?

What is the Land and Water Conservation Fund and why is it important to you?

The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) is the primary source of funding available to the Federal land management agencies to preserve, develop and assure access to outdoor recreational resources. This includes the purchase of in-holdings within existing Federal lands, the purchase of large private holdings that may be threatened by development pressures, as well as the purchase of easements and corridors which provide improved public access to existing federal lands.

In the West, these public lands are where most hunters hunt, and many other forms of recreation take place. They are not subject to the threats of exclusive leasing that threaten hunting and outdoor traditions. They will never be sold and posted "no tresspassing."

How does the Land and Water Conservation Fund get funding?

The LWCF is a “trust fund” that accumulates revenues primarily from oil and gas leases on the Outer Continental Shelf. Over the last decade, these revenues have averaged around $6.4 billion annually. The fund was created by Congress in 1965 as a way to at least partially offset the impacts of oil and gas exploration on our nation’s natural resources. The enabling legislation allowed for $900 million annually - less that 15% of the average revenues over the last decade - to be appropriated to the LWCF for acquisition habitats and recreation areas and to assist in the development of local parks and recreation facilities. The enabling legislation requires that Congress annually appropriate LWCF monies to specific projects. Unappropriated monies are returned to the Federal Treasury to fund unrelated funding needs.

What’s the problem?

Unfortunately, Congress has failed to annually appropriate the full $900 million contributed to the LWCF. In the last decade, Congress only appropriated an average of $313 million annually, or less than 5% of the available offshore revenues. Consequently, Federal land management agencies have not been able to take advantage of willing seller opportunities that would have protected important wildlife habitats from development and provided more places for hunters to hunt. The lack of available funding has precluded these agencies from actively searching for easement and fee acquisition opportunities that would improve hunter access to large tracts of existing Federal lands.

related articles I-161 Guest Opinion ( 08/18/2010 )   Citizen Initiative 161 is sponsored by Montana resident hunters, tired of battling negative impacts caused by the current law guaranteeing Montana hunting outfitters 7,800 non-resident clients. These impacts include the loss of hunting access and the privatization of our wildlife. Sixteenmile Creek Acquisition Project ( 07/06/2010 )   Sixteenmile Creek Acquisition Project Needs Support and Comment. Two members of Public Land/Water Access Assoc.

public land issues Cherry Creek Road - Sweetgrass Cty Cherry Creek Road The Cherry Creek Road nine miles south of Big Timber, east off of Highway 298, crosses about a quarter-mile of Lee Smoot's property and then three-quarters of a mile of George Matelich and Michael Goldberg's ranch before reaching the Gallatin National Forest boundary – and 16,000 acres of public land. SCENIC VIEW ROAD - April 2010 IMPORTANT LOCAL ATTRACTION CLOSEDPrairie County commissioners are taking action approximately 2 years after a landowner erected a gate, installed a cattle guard and posted a sign across a road that leads to a popular scenic overlook northwest of the town of Terry.     10 more public land issues