Archived Outdoors

Congress passes legislation to fund parks, conservation

Congress passes legislation to fund parks, conservation

President Donald Trump signed the Great American Outdoors Act into law on Tuesday, Aug. 4, guaranteeing funding for much-needed maintenance in the national parks and for future conservation projects nationwide. 

In celebration, entrance fees were waived on lands managed by the U.S. Department of the Interior Aug. 5, and every Aug. 4 going forward will be designated “Great American Outdoors Day,” a fee-free day to commemorate signing of the Act. 

The legislation provides dedicated funding to reduce the National Park Service’s deferred maintenance backlog and fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund. For years, the Park Service has experienced chronic underfunding including a reduction in staffing and a growing backlog of nearly $12 billion in needed repairs — all while dealing with record visitation. The legislation will dedicate up to $9.5 billion over five years to address the highest-priority repair needs.

The bill will also provide $900 million per year to the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which for 50 years has protected land for parks, wildlife refuges and recreation nationwide. The program is funded using a portion of revenues from offshore oil and gas royalty payments but has seen trouble in recent years, with the program lapsing for six months between September 2018 and March 2019 after Congress failed to pass reauthorizing legislation in time. The program was permanently reauthorized last year, but advocates have been working to see the program receiving full funding as well, as revenues had been diverted since the fund’s 1964 creation. 

The bipartisan bill passed the Republican-controlled Senate on June 17 and the Democrat-controlled House on July 22. 

Smokey Mountain News Logo
SUPPORT THE SMOKY MOUNTAIN NEWS AND
INDEPENDENT, AWARD-WINNING JOURNALISM
Go to top
Payment Information

/

At our inception 20 years ago, we chose to be different. Unlike other news organizations, we made the decision to provide in-depth, regional reporting free to anyone who wanted access to it. We don’t plan to change that model. Support from our readers will help us maintain and strengthen the editorial independence that is crucial to our mission to help make Western North Carolina a better place to call home. If you are able, please support The Smoky Mountain News.

The Smoky Mountain News is a wholly private corporation. Reader contributions support the journalistic mission of SMN to remain independent. Your support of SMN does not constitute a charitable donation. If you have a question about contributing to SMN, please contact us.