[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 10]
[House]
[Pages 14352-14355]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    LAND AND WATER CONSERVATION FUND

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 6, 2015, the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Grijalva) is 
recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader.
  Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I rise this evening to talk about the Land 
and Water Conservation Fund, our Nation's most important conservation 
and outdoor recreation program.
  For more than 50 years, the Land and Water Conservation Fund has 
conserved our Nation's most cherished natural spaces and historic 
landmarks. This groundbreaking program, created and reauthorized on a 
strong bipartisan basis, has protected and expanded iconic landscapes 
in every State and is responsible for more than 40,000 State and local 
outdoor recreation projects, from playgrounds and baseball fields to 
urban parks and nature refuges.
  By reinvesting revenues from offshore oil and gas development in 
communities across America, the Land and Water Conservation Fund has 
become ``America's best parks program.''
  In my home State of Arizona, the fund has provided approximately $223 
million in funding to help preserve iconic places like the Grand 
Canyon, Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge, and the San Pedro 
Riparian National Conservation Area.
  Recently, I had the pleasure of joining National Park staff and 
students from Cholla High School, Desert View High School, and Pueblo 
High School for a day of appreciation at Saguaro National Park West. 
For many of the students that joined us on this visit, this was their 
first visit to Saguaro, despite it being a 15-minute drive from Tucson.
  Saguaro officials have leveraged the Land and Water Conservation Fund 
funding to benefit Arizonans, the desert tortoise, Gila monsters, and 
other desert wildlife that call Saguaro home. Without it, our students 
would have had a smaller national park to experience, less to learn, 
and less to enjoy.
  The Land and Water Conservation Fund has preserved iconic sites like 
this all over the country. Our trip to Saguaro was hardly unique. These 
stories of discovery happen every day thanks to the Land and Water 
Conservation Fund.
  Unfortunately, the fund's authorizing legislation expires on 
September 30, 2015. Six legislative days remain before

[[Page 14353]]

the clock runs out. The stakes are high.
  If the Land and Water Conservation Fund is not renewed, special wild 
areas will be at greater risk of overdevelopment, and our Nation's 
ability to conserve lands for future generations will be severely 
undercut.
  Congress should build on the Land and Water Conservation Fund's 
legacy. We should stop playing political games and do what the public 
clearly wants us to do. We should permanently reauthorize and fully 
fund the program. It is that simple.
  The House Republican leadership has not acted to extend the Land and 
Water Conservation Fund. They seem perfectly content to let it expire.
  Rather than meeting with their fellow legislators and reaching a 
compromise, as Senate Republicans have done, the House Republican 
leadership, once again, has shown an inability to do what is best for 
sportsmen, the outdoor industry, recreation enthusiasts, and wildlife. 
By allowing the fund to expire, they serve no one's interest and create 
a deficit in our legacy as protectors of public land and public 
resources in this country.
  This is not a controversial program. It protects public land for 
future use. There is no more an American goal than that, but it is held 
up by a leadership team that would rather do nothing.
  Past Congresses have reauthorized the Land and Water Conservation 
Fund with support from both parties. It shouldn't be any different this 
time. The support is there.
  On April 15, as the chart illustrates, a bill to permanently 
reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund was introduced. To 
date, the bill boasts support from over 165 Members of Congress, both 
Republican and Democrats.
  I have made a request--as the sequence of time that we have been 
waiting--asking for a full hearing, a markup, and an eventual vote on 
this floor.
  We asked for a hearing on H.R. 1814. I made a request to hold a vote 
on H.R. 1814. These requests have fallen on deaf ears.
  The clock is running out. House Republican leaders must act. It won't 
take much to get the Land and Water Conservation Fund back on track, 
but they have to say yes to moving forward and to doing a bipartisan 
legislation, which is what the colleagues of this Chamber are asking 
for. It is time for action.
  We are calling, in a bipartisan way, on our colleagues to permanently 
reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund. To not do so is not 
carrying out our full responsibilities as stewards of the public lands, 
but also, more importantly, when you have before you a request by over 
165 Members on a bipartisan manner on a bill that has compromises 
within it that were reached at the Senate level as well, it appears to 
me that not to do this fund is to set up this fund for failure, to set 
up this fund for dismantling, and to set up this fund to redirect the 
purpose for which this fund was created 50 years ago.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Massachusetts (Ms. 
Tsongas), the ranking member for the Subcommittee on Federal Lands.

                              {time}  1945

  Ms. TSONGAS. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank Ranking Member 
Grijalva for his leadership and advocacy on behalf of the Land and 
Water Conservation Fund.
  We have a generational responsibility to protect our Nation's 
remaining natural and historic resources for our children and our 
grandchildren. The Land and Water Conservation Fund has been an 
instrumental tool, an invaluable tool in this effort.
  For over 50 years, the Land and Water Conservation Fund has carried 
out a simple, bipartisan idea: use revenues from the depletion of one 
Federal resource--offshore oil and gas--to conserve another--our land 
and water--and provide recreation opportunities for all Americans. It 
does not cost taxpayer money or contribute to the Federal deficit, 
relying instead on royalties paid by oil and gas companies in exchange 
for their right to develop offshore resources in waters that belong to 
all of the American people.
  LWCF has also proven to be a critical tool to protect some of our 
Nation's most significant cultural and historic sites, protecting 
places that have shaped and defined who we are as a people and a 
country and would not have been protected without support from the 
Federal Government.
  This past weekend, I was honored to host Secretary of the Interior 
Sally Jewell at my annual River Day, an event I have held in my 
district for the past 9 years that celebrates the rivers that connect 
the Third Congressional District of Massachusetts and the many partners 
who work to protect these resources that provide clean drinking water, 
create tremendous recreational opportunities, and bring natural beauty 
to our daily life.
  As part of River Day, Secretary Jewell and I visited Minute Man 
National Historical Park, which commemorates the famous shot heard 
'round the world in the very beginnings of our country. Like many 
national parks and public lands across the country, Minute Man, and all 
those who visit, have directly benefited from the Land and Water 
Conservation Fund.
  Barrett's Farm is the former home of Colonel James Barrett, the 
commander of the Middlesex militia during the Revolutionary War. His 
farm was used to store colonial militia weapons and was the objective 
of the British march on Concord that inspired Paul Revere's ride. 
British forces marched from Boston to seize the munitions stored at the 
farm, but Barrett's militia confronted the British soldiers at the 
North Bridge, where the shot heard 'round the world was fired, 
launching America's war for independence.
  For many years, this important historic site, Barrett's Farm, was 
privately owned, restricted from the public, and was in a complete 
state of disrepair. Thanks to the Land and Water Conservation Fund, the 
National Park Service was able to purchase Barrett's Farm from a 
willing, private local foundation, ensuring that this nationally 
significant historical site is preserved to be enjoyed by visitors for 
many years to come.
  Fifty years ago, our predecessors in this Congress had the wisdom and 
foresight to establish the Land and Water Conservation Fund for the 
benefit of future generations of Americans. Dismantling this program or 
letting its authorization expire disadvantages all in real and 
significant ways. I can't imagine the loss of the important piece of 
history of Barrett's Farm that the LWCF made possible to preserve.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting full funding and 
permanent reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund, 
making sure that it remains one of our Nation's most successful and 
effective conservation tools.
  Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California's 
47th District (Mr. Lowenthal), the ranking member of the Subcommittee 
on Energy and Mineral Resources.
  Mr. LOWENTHAL. Mr. Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Grijalva for 
calling us together for this Special Order hour to highlight the need 
for the Land and Water Conservation Fund and for his leadership in 
seeking a permanent reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation 
Fund.
  As has been pointed out, the Land and Water Conservation Fund is far 
and away our Nation's most important conservation program. The LWCF is 
a popular and successful bipartisan program for the conservation and 
protection of America's irreplaceable natural, historic, cultural, and 
outdoor landmarks.
  Over its 50-year history, the fund has conserved more than 5 million 
acres for parks, for recreation, for forests, for refuges, and for 
other land through the Federal program, but that is just part of the 
LWCF. Also, more than 2.6 million acres has been saved in communities 
throughout every State in the Nation.
  It has conserved iconic landscapes in every State. It is responsible 
for more than 40,000 State and local outdoor recreational projects at 
no cost, as has been pointed out, to the American taxpayer. In fact, 
according to a recent

[[Page 14354]]

economic analysis, every dollar invested in the conservation of public 
lands through the LWCF leads to $4 in economic activities to local 
communities.
  Our Nation's conserved public lands are the essential infrastructure 
for a vibrant outdoor recreational economy that contributes over $646 
billion to the economy each year and supports more than 1 in every 15 
jobs in the United States.
  That economic activity and job creation plays out locally all over 
the country, not only in the broad service and manufacturing sectors, 
but in the thousands upon thousands of recreational destination areas 
and the gateway communities where we all go to enjoy the outdoors. My 
home State of California has received more than $2.3 billion in LWCF 
funding over the past five decades, which has helped to protect some of 
our State's most treasured places.
  The Land and Water Conservation Fund also plays a crucial role in 
building up the ability of our lands to reduce the damages caused by 
climate change. Our network of public lands plays a critical role in 
addressing the challenges that climate change poses to our forests, 
fish and wildlife, and riparian resources. America's forests naturally 
capture a remarkable 13 percent of U.S. carbon emissions each year, but 
the U.S. Forest Service projects that private forests, storing more 
than 2 billion tons of carbon, are at risk of development in addition. 
Coastal wetlands, we also know, can lessen the damages caused by major 
storms, and land conservation in the wildland-urban interface can 
reduce home losses from major fires.
  Continued investment in the Land and Water Conservation Fund will be 
essential to help us buffer the impacts of a changing climate. If 
funding is allowed to expire, the American public will lose one of our 
greatest tools to ensure the protection of our public lands and waters 
and the ability of everyone to go outside and to enjoy these wonderful 
resources. We simply cannot let that happen.
  Congress must honor the bipartisan commitment it made over 50 years 
ago and ensure that our children and our grandchildren get to enjoy 
America's treasured outdoor spaces the same way we have been able to 
enjoy those spaces. We must permanently reauthorize the LWCF.
  Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California's 
Second District (Mr. Huffman), the ranking member on the Water, Power, 
and Oceans Subcommittee of the Committee on Natural Resources.
  Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, for more than 50 years, the Land and Water 
Conservation Fund has protected America's natural heritage. This fund 
is one of our Nation's most important conservation tools. Every single 
year, millions of Americans hike the trails that this fund has helped 
build, they visit the national parks that this fund helped create, and 
they enjoy the wildland vistas that it helped protect.
  This fund has supported more than 40,000 projects in nearly every 
county in every State in our Nation. In my own district on California's 
north coast, it has funded projects in Redwood National Park, in Six 
Rivers National Forest, and in the Point Reyes National Seashore.
  Since 2004, it has helped add more than 1,000 acres to the King Range 
National Conservation Area, which is one of the most rugged and 
spectacular backpacking areas you will find anywhere in the continental 
United States. It is also known as the Lost Coast.
  The positive impact that this fund has had is simply staggering. The 
Land and Water Conservation Fund has permanently protected 5 million 
acres of public lands, and that includes sections of American icons, 
like the Grand Canyon National Park and the Appalachian Trail. Best of 
all, it has done all of this at no taxpayer expense. The Land and Water 
Conservation Fund is financed by a portion of offshore drilling fees.
  Congress needs to remember that preserving our natural heritage isn't 
just good for our environment; it is good for our economy. Outdoor 
recreation is a cornerstone for many local and State economies, 
bringing tourists from around the world to shop at local businesses, to 
eat at restaurants, to stay at hotels.
  In California alone, outdoor recreation supports $85.4 billion in 
consumer spending and 732,000 jobs across the State; but in just 2 
weeks, authorization of this fund will expire, leaving local economies 
in jeopardy, leaving our land managers struggling to make up for lost 
funding.
  Fifty years ago, Congress created the Land and Water Conservation 
Fund with an overwhelming bipartisan vote. I hope Congress can come 
together now to support H.R. 1814, a bipartisan bill sponsored by my 
friend Mr. Grijalva, that permanently reauthorizes the Land and Water 
Conservation Fund. America's natural heritage and our economy depend on 
it.
  Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from 
Washington's First District (Ms. DelBene).
  Ms. DelBENE. Mr. Speaker, I have the honor of representing one of the 
most beautiful and diverse districts in the country. It includes the 
Alpine Lakes Wilderness, the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, 
the North Cascades National Park, and the North Creek Forest, all 
incredible areas for people throughout our region and across the 
country to enjoy.
  Unfortunately, in just 14 days, the congressional authorization for 
the Land and Water Conservation Fund will expire. LWCF was established 
50 years ago to maintain outdoor recreational opportunities nationwide. 
It is the only Federal program dedicated to the conservation of our 
national parks, forests, wildernesses, wildlife refuges, State and 
local parks, and working forests.
  Since its inception, the fund has invested $637 million in Washington 
State projects alone, including three grants for the North Creek 
Forest, a 64-acre park I visited just last month. A community 
organization called Friends of North Creek Forest and a college student 
named Jordan from the University of Washington at Bothell gave me a 
tour of the forest.
  For his senior thesis, Jordan has worked with the community and 
conservation volunteers to clean up the site and design new trails for 
hikers and hundreds of schoolchildren to enjoy. This forest is a safe 
and healthy place for our families and students to have fun and learn 
about species diversity and the importance of conservation efforts. 
This is just one project among thousands across the country.
  Without a new authorization for this critical program, environmental 
conservation projects and Washington's outdoor recreational industry 
would be needlessly harmed because not only is the Land and Water 
Conservation Fund crucial for protecting the Pacific Northwest's 
beautiful spaces, it is also important for our State's economy as well 
as the entire country's. In Washington State alone, outdoor recreation 
supports nearly 200,000 jobs and contributes $20 billion a year to our 
economy.
  The Land and Water Conservation Fund uses no taxpayer dollars and is 
funded through oil and gas receipts paid by energy companies. 
Unfortunately, in the past, Congress has diverted this money for other 
uses. That is why I, along with 159 of my colleagues, have cosponsored 
a bill to permanently reauthorize the fund.
  My beautiful State boasts some of our Nation's most beautiful 
forests, mountains, and waterways, and taking care of these natural 
resources and protecting our environment is critical to preserving the 
quality of life that we cherish.

                              {time}  2000

  We can't risk defunding the great work of these environmental 
conservation projects, which is why Congress must reauthorize the Land 
and Water Conservation Fund.
  I want to thank Congressman Grijalva for organizing this Special 
Order hour on such a critical issue.
  Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, after September 30, the authorization for 
the Land and Water Conservation Fund expires. That date is a looming 
date for the Republican leadership of this House.

[[Page 14355]]

  With it comes the talk and potential of a government shutdown. Other 
critical programs that face reauthorization are also ending on 
September 30.
  Part of the issue of leadership is to allow the House to work its 
will. Until this House has the opportunity to deal with this issue of 
the Land and Water Conservation Fund, we will continue to not know its 
status and we will watch the agonizingly slow and painful dismantling 
and end of this program.
  The reauthorization has, in its history, been bipartisan and 
bicameral. This legislation enjoys bipartisan and bicameral support.
  Both Republican and Democratic colleagues are part of the 165 
sponsors of the legislation in the House. The compromise in that 
committee was between the ranking member and the chair of that 
committee in the Senate.
  So I think it behooves us to look at this fund, for every day past 
the 30th of September $2.5 million will be lost to that fund, money 
that we cannot afford to lose.
  Mr. Speaker, to wait for the ashes of the Land and Water Conservation 
Fund after the 30th and then to develop it without bipartisan input, 
without the Democrats playing any role at all in legislation that 
redefines the Fund and that includes purposes for which the Fund was 
never established and redirect its funds into areas which are far from 
the mission of the Fund when it was established 50 years ago, is 
effectively killing the Fund.
  The cuts in our Federal land agencies and land management agencies 
that have endured in the last four or five budgets point to the fact 
that the Land and Water Conservation Fund has become an essential 
supplemental support to many of our public lands and the projects and 
outdoor activities and wildlife protections that the American people 
expect.
  I suggest to the House that this reauthorization should be devoid of 
controversy and should be devoid of partisan bickering and political 
grandstanding. This is a routine item that requires action by the 
House.
  Mr. Speaker, before the time runs out, fully funding and fully 
authorizing the Land and Water Conservation Fund on a permanent basis 
is what the public is asking for and is what 165 Members of this House 
are asking for.
  I believe that the Republican leadership of this House has to act and 
allow the House of Representatives, the elected Representatives of the 
people of this Nation, to work its will and take that vote.
  My colleagues have mentioned the economic benefit and priorities of 
the Land and Water Conservation Fund. Let me just add that a bipartisan 
poll found that 88 percent of the voters support continuing to set 
aside offshore oil and gas drilling fees that should go into the Land 
and Water Conservation Fund and 85 percent of Americans want the fund 
to be fully funded.
  For every dollar that is spent on Land and Water Conservation Funds 
and that is invested, it results in a return of $4 in economic value 
from the natural resources goods and services alone.
  I think it is worth noting that $900 million comes from those 
offshore oil and gas resources and $17 billion that is collected from 
those fees and resources that are collected from offshore drilling and 
gas and oil development goes for other purposes elsewhere in the 
government.
  So we are talking essentially about a very small sum of money that 
many of us felt should have been raised a long time ago. We are 
jeopardizing this sum of money.
  In jeopardizing this sum of money, we are further dismantling and 
further hurting the public's use of our public lands and, more 
importantly, the protections and cultural resource activities that 
occur as a result of the fund.
  It is a simple matter. Bring it to a hearing. Bring it to a vote. I 
would urge the leadership of this House that it is way past time. To 
agonizingly wait for September 30 is not a function of government. It 
is cynical. It is wrong.
  When you have a bill before you that enjoys the bipartisan support 
that H.R. 1814 enjoys, it is time to bring it to the floor and allow 
this Congress to vote and allow this bill to be reauthorized on a 
permanent level, on a permanent basis.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

                          ____________________