Should the Land and Water Conservation Fund Be Permanent? (S. 338)

What is S. 338?

(Updated January 14, 2021)

This bill seeks to secure funding for local and national parks. It would do so by permanently authorizing the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWFC), a program that uses the royalties paid by gas companies for offshore drilling rights to fund local national parks.

It would also add a public access stipulation to the LWFC: Either $10 million or 1.5 percent of funds available be spent on land that the public can use for recreation.

Argument in favor

This program provides valuable support for national parks, without requiring any tax raises. What’s there to dislike?

Argument opposed

Yeah, this provides support for natural resources — with support from the destruction of other natural resources. The ends don’t justify the means.

Impact

state park employees, businesses that donate to the LWCF, people that like spending time outside

Cost of S. 338

A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.

Additional Info