Washington D.C.- In response to Senate passage of S. 47, the public lands package, which would permanently reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), among other provisions, the League of Conservation Voters issued the following statement from LCV President Gene Karpinski:

“This bill is a major step forward in restoring the Land and Water Conservation Fund, a hugely popular conservation program that has helped create local parks, enhance national parks, and boost access to public lands in every region of the country. The Republican-led Congress should have never let LWCF expire as they did last September, and while this package is not perfect, we welcome the Senate’s passage of this bipartisan legislation, which would permanently reauthorize LWCF and protect millions of acres of lands and waters. We will also continue to urge Congress to enact full, dedicated funding for LWCF, in addition to permanent reauthorization, to end the chronic underfunding of this critical program.

“The new, pro-environment House of Representatives now has a great opportunity to take a big step forward for conservation by swiftly taking up and passing this public lands package. We urge them to seize it.”

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