Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) today celebrated the Senate passage of the Great American Outdoors Act to permanently and fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and provide funding for deferred maintenance projects on public lands. The legislation funds the LWCF at the fully authorized annual amount of $900 million and makes $1.9 billion available each year for five years for deferred maintenance projects within the National Parks Service, the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management and Bureau of Indian Education schools.
“The LWCF funds so many important projects across Nevada, from flood control to conservation of wildlife refuges and public recreation areas. I’m proud to have fought for the passage of this monumental bill that will secure full and permanent funding for the LWCF, while also addressing the large deferred-maintenance backlog that threatens the well-being of our national parks and public lands. Nevada’s precious outdoor spaces must be preserved for future generations, and I’ll continue to do all I can in the Senate to secure their future.”
BACKGROUND:
Senator Cortez Masto is a cosponsor of the Great American Outdoors Act, which will provide full and permanent funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and address the $12 billion maintenance backlog in our National Parks System. The Senator also helped pass bipartisan legislation – included in the Natural Resources Management Act – to permanently reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund in February of 2019.
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