Lawmakers are preparing a 250th birthday gift for the national parks, but key Republican players in both chambers are not keen on the plan.
House Natural Resources Chair Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) said there’s considerable interest in the GOP conference in what he’s calling “Great American Outdoors Act 250,” a reauthorization of legislation that was signed five years ago by President Donald Trump.
That measure infused $1.9 billion annually over five years into the park and lands maintenance backlog, and permanently funded the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) with $900 million every year from oil and gas revenues.
Trump has signaled his support again, Westerman said, and suggested it was a topic of conversation among members at last week’s House Republican policy retreat at the Kennedy Center in Washington.
