President Donald Trump secured one of the most consequential conservation laws this century by signing the bipartisan Great American Outdoors Act almost five years ago. This signature law provides permanent, dedicated funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), one of America’s most successful conservation programs.
Passed in the 1960s and funded by offshore oil and gas royalties, LWCF has been a quiet but steady engine for making our outdoor pursuits a reality. Whether you are an angler looking for access to your local river or stream, a hunter worried about high quality habitat or a kid just looking for a place to play with friends, LWCF has benefited every county of every state in America.
In my home state of Colorado, LWCF has helped secure access and conserve special places, including boat launches on the Colorado River and the Gunnison Gorge National Conservation Area.
Increased outdoor access: hunting and fishing for everyone
Upon passage of the Great American Outdoors Act – which passed with three-quarters of Congress voting for the measure –Trout Unlimited wrote a thank you note to President Trump as well as Democrats and Republicans in Congress. In it we said, “because of you – all of you – we can hunt more, fish more and play more.”
As the adage goes, there is nothing certain in this world.
Even though the Great American Outdoors Act requires $900 million in mandatory spending each year to increase outdoor access, the administration’s fiscal year 2026 budget proposes to divert over one-third of LWCF funding to unauthorized maintenance activities, resulting in deep cuts to all National Park Service, Fish & Wildlife Service, Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management projects. These cuts will lead to the loss of access to places where Americans fish, hunt and recreate all around the country.
America the beautiful: let’s keep it that way
Addressing the maintenance backlog on public lands is an important issue, but diverting LWCF funds is the wrong approach. Thankfully, Senators Daines (R-MT), King (R-ME) and a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers have introduced the America the Beautiful Act (S.1547), which would dedicate $2 billion per year over eight years for deferred maintenance on federal public lands. These are separate but related issues.
We must, and can, do both.
As House and Senate Appropriations Committees begin their work on the budget, we encourage them to include the mandatory $900 million for state and federal LWCF programs and projects, as required by law in the Great American Outdoors Act.
We also encourage Congress to swiftly advance the America the Beautiful Act. Doing so will increase access for fishing and hunting, sustain our sporting heritage and fuel the $1.2 trillion outdoor recreation economy.
LWCF is a promise to the American people that our elected officials will support and strengthen our outdoor heritage. It is time to follow through on that commitment and pass the America the Beautiful Act without gutting LWCF.