LWCF State-side Funds Announced

August 13, 2015 – U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell today announced $42 million in funding to states to promote outdoor recreation and conservation. The funding, distributed to all 50 states, territories and the District of Columbia, comes from offshore oil and gas royalties through the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) State and Local Assistance Grant Program (State-side). States match this funding by at least 50 percent and determine how to leverage the funding to support the priorities of local communities, such as building playgrounds, conserving natural landscapes, and building trails.

The Land and Water Conservation Fund, enacted 50 years ago, is set to expire this September 30th. Secretary Jewell urged Congress to act swiftly to reauthorize the program stating, “A half century ago, Congress established a landmark law to use some revenues from offshore oil and gas development to help states and communities across America set aside green spaces, build boat docks and ball fields, and undertake other recreation projects. Today, Congress has the opportunity to continue this great legacy by permanently reauthorizing and fully funding the Land and Water Conservation Fund.”

The Land and Water Conservation Fund was established in 1965 to ensure access to outdoor recreation resources for present and future generations, and to provide money to federal, state and local governments to purchase land, water and wetlands for the benefit of all Americans. The primary source of revenue for the Land and Water Conservation Fund is from federal oil and gas leases on the Outer Continental Shelf, the intention being to use the depletion of one public resource to conserve another public resource.

In addition to the funding to states announced today, each year the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture recommend high priority recreational and conservation investments through the Land and Water Conservation Fund. Locating and learning about those special places can now be done easily through an interactive map of projects proposed in the President’s budget for 2016. On this map the public can explore the 173 public projects proposed for investment in 43 states, including many critically important trails projects on the Pacific Crest Trail, Continental Divide Trail, Appalachian Trail, and others.