December 20, 2018 Dear Senators and Members of Congress, The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) has been our nation’s most successful conservation and recreation program for 52 years, and yet Congress allowed it to expire on September 30. LWCF has invested funds in every state and nearly every county of the U.S. – creating opportunities for Americans to play outside at their local playgrounds and ballfields, visit iconic landscapes at our national parks, national forests and wildlife refuges, and experience America at historic and cultural sites. Failing to reauthorize and fully fund LWCF would break the long-standing promise to the American people to invest a small portion of revenues from offshore energy development in lasting natural infrastructure: our land, outdoor recreation economy, access to hunting and angling opportunities, water resources, and the history and culture of our great nation. To prevent the loss of this critical program, and truly fulfill the promise of all of its diverse funding tools, we urge you to support permanent reauthorization and full, dedicated funding of LWCF. LWCF is our country’s most important conservation program, supporting local economies, providing infrastructure for public health, tourism and recreation, and increasing access to the outdoors in all states and territories. It is paid for with non-taxpayer dollars. More than 50 years ago, Congress made a commitment to the American public that a small portion of revenues from offshore drilling in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) would go to natural resource conservation and outdoor recreation programs, as an offset for the depletion of the offshore oil and gas resources that belong to us all. Each year, $900 million in OCS revenues are deposited in the LWCF Treasury account to be used for projects that assist in securing hunting and fishing access, working forest protection, battlefield and historic site preservation, National Parks inholdings purchases, urban and community parks investments, and conservation of critical wildlife habitat. Unfortunately, over half of LWCF’s annual deposits are diverted to unrelated, unspecified uses. Spending these funds on other purposes breaks this promise to the American people. The public does not support using these funds for other purposes – we want and need more access to public lands, not less. This program is overwhelmingly popular and has maintained broad bipartisan support due to its more than half-century history of successful, locally driven conservation. In 2016, permanent reauthorization of LWCF passed the Senate for the first time in the Energy Policy Modernization Act (S. 2012), which included commonsense modifications to the program without disrupting its original intent. We support this bipartisan compromise language, which is again part of Senate energy legislation this year, and hope the 115th Congress will move forward with a similar approach, Permanent reauthorization legislation in the House (H.R. 6759 and H.R. 502) and Senate (S. 569 and S. 896) have strong bipartisan support —a rare bright spot of common purpose and momentum across party lines that we will continue to foster and support. Eliminating LWCF, gutting its funding, or placing restrictions on its use would undermine the economic asset that is our federal, state, and local public lands. According to the Outdoor Industry Association, hunting, fishing, camping, and other outdoor recreation activities contribute a total of $887 billion annually to the U.S. economy, supporting 7.6 million jobs. The economic impact of the outdoor recreation economy is especially significant in rural communities with high percentages of public lands. An analysis by Headwaters Economics shows that rural western counties with high shares of federal lands have had significantly faster economic growth, attracting not just tourism and recreation but new residents and businesses in other sectors as well. Cutting and gutting LWCF puts the outdoor recreation economy at tremendous, unnecessary risk –our jobs, our livelihoods, our quality of life and our businesses are at stake. Willing-seller landowners want the freedom to sell private inholdings to our national parks, forests and wildlife refuges. Likewise, ranchers, farmers and foresters are hoping to enter into conservation easements on their critically important working lands. But if funding is not available, land will inevitably be sold to developers, frustrating public access and destroying the integrity of the landscape for wildlife and for hunters, anglers, ranchers, hikers, and all others who enjoy America’s special places. We fervently hope to see permanent reauthorization and full, dedicated funding enacted before the end of the 115th Congress. If you have not already done so, please cosponsor LWCF reauthorization legislation in the House (H.R. 6759 and H.R. 502) or Senate (S. 569 and S. 896) and sign on to any Dear Colleague letters circulated to demonstrate support for action now on reauthorizing and fully funding this important program. The Land and Water Conservation Fund is a vital program to millions of Americans across the country. Your local communities, businesses, and constituents need the certainty that it will remain as a robust and flexible set of conservation tools for future generations. We appreciate your doing all you can to sustain this important commitment to our land and water, our wildlife, our history and our way of life. Sincerely, Organizations/Businesses Alembics American Canoe Association, MI 2d1c Solutions LLC Alenco, Inc American Canoe Association, NH 2L trails group Alice's Wonderland American Canoe Association, NJ 350 Eugene Alive Florida American Fly Fishing Trade Abbott Construction All Good Association AC Power LLC Allegheny Outfitters American Hiking Society Access Fund Alliance for Historic Landscape American Packrafting Association Accessories Unlimited, Inc. Preservation: Conserving Cultural Ammonoosuc Chapter of NH Audubon Accokeek Foundation at Piscataway Landscapes Angola Parks & Recreation Park Alliance for the Wild Rockies Animals Are Sentient Beings, Inc. Accord. Capital Management Alliance of Florida Land Trusts Anne Penniman Associates LLC Active Endeavors Alliance Outfitters Anomaly Action Sports Inc. Active Enthusiast Allotropy Antelope Valley Audubon Society Ada County Fish & Game League Alpha Climbing LLC Apex Clean Energy, Inc. Adirondack Mountain Club Alpine Lakes Protection Society Aplat Inc. Adventure Club SLO Alpine Shop Appalachian Forest School Adventure Editorial Alpine Shop, Ltd. Appalachian Mountain Club AdventureKEEN AltaPasa Green Circle Appalachian Ski and Outdoors Agate Bay Dry Dock Inc. Alta's Farm Appalachian Trail Conservancy Agricultural Stewardship Association Amargosa Conservancy Appalachian Trail Museum AIRE, Inc. America Forests Appdynamics Alachua Conservation Trust American Alpine Club Apple Outlaw Cider Alamo Inn B&B, Gear, & Tours American Alpine Institute Apuchine Alaska Trails Association American Bird Conservancy Aquashicola/ Pohopoco Watershed Alava Surf Company American Canoe Association, CA Conservancy Arctic Treks Backcountry Horsemen of California, Bright Power Arctic Wild Los Padres Unit Bristlecone Mountain Sports Arizona Land and Water Trust Backcountry Horsemen of Nevada. Britton Hardcastle Arizona Stalks and Shots High Sierra Chapter Brodhead Chapter 289 Trout Unlimited Arizona Wildlife Federation Backcountry Horsemen of Virginia Brooklyn Adventure Company Arkansas Fly Fishers Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Brooklyn Solarworks Arkansas Wildlife Federation Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, OK Buckeye Trail Association Arlington Garden in Pasadena Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, TX Burnham Park Association Arroyo Seco Foundation Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, Utah Business for Montana's Outdoors Arroyos & Foothills Conservancy Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, WI Byte Solutions, Inc. As It Happens Creative Backwoods Mountain Sports Cacapon and Lost Rivers Land Trust Ashley Sportsman Club Bad Cactus Creative, Inc. Cadillac Area Land Conservancy Asian Pacific Policy and Planning Baglione Custom Woodworks, Inc. CAL FIRE Council Baptist General Convention of Virginia California Canoe & Kayak, Inc. Aspen Valley Land Trust Basin & Range Magazine California Chaparral Institute Association for the Advancement of Bayou Land Conservancy California Council of Land Trusts International Education Baystate Organic Certifiers California Cultural Resources Atali Apparel Co. be well {groomed!} Preservation Alliance Audubon California Bear Yuba Land Trust California Hunters & Anglers Society Audubon Naturalist Society Bearcub Outfitters California Invasive Plant Council Audubon Society of Corvallis Bearden High Environmental Club California Native Plant Society Audubon Society of New Hampshire Sponsor California Nurses Association Austin Backpackers Meetup Group Bear-Paw Regional Greenways California State Coastal Conservancy Back Country Horseman Of Iowa Beautycounter California State Parks Foundation Back Country Horseman of Uwharrie Belltown Pizza Californians for Western Wilderness Back Country Horsemen Bristlecone Bennington Area Trail System Camp Merrie-Woode Chapter Berkshire Environmental Action Team, Campfire Ventures LLC Back Country Horsemen of America Inc. (BEAT) Canton Audubon Society Back Country Horsemen of America, Bethel Area Chamber of Commerce Capital Region Land Conservancy CT Bhakti, Inc. Capitol Land Trust Back Country Horsemen of California - Bike Walk Montana, Inc. Caribou Lake Property Owners'