ADK and Trail Conference members have a chance in 1999 to join outdoor enthusiasts across the nation in common cause to restore federal money for buying state parks and wilderness areas.
New York has made magnificent purchases like Whitney and Champion Canoe Areas without any federal funding contribution. New York did not always have to preserve wilderness and parks without help from Washington.
In years past, a federal program called the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) provided millions of dollars of federal money to Albany for purchasing wild lands and parks.
The LWCF was established by Congress in 1964 to provide a stream of federal funding for preserving wilderness and parks across the nation. The funding for LWCF is generated from the revenue from offshore oil and gas leases, some $4.5 billion in recent years. LWCF originally had both a state matching grants component called "state-side" and a federal land acquisition component. The "stateside" program provided 50/50 match grants to the state for the purchase of state parks, municipal recreation areas and state wilderness areas. A highly popular and successful program during its heyday, states used $3.3 billion of state-side funds to preserve some 2.4 million acres by 1992.
New York received about $200 million between 1965 and 1994. In New York, LWCF has funded 1,100 projects, including portions of Minnewaska and Allegany State Parks, the Santanoni Preserve in the High Peaks and the newly purchased Sterling Forest State Park. Many people travel to New York to visit these magnificent parks. They are truly national treasures.
Congress, beginning in the early 1980s, began to siphon off the state-side money for deficit reduction and non-conservation pork projects. Congress has failed to make an LWCF stateside appropriation since the 1995 fiscal year. Since that time, the only LWCF appropriation for state land acquisition was the one-time $17.5 million for the purchase of Sterling Forest.
In 1997 and 1998, conservation groups, including ADK and the Trail Conference, urged Congress to revive "state-side" funding. Last year, the Senate included $100 million of "state-side" money in an Interior Appropriations bill. Unfortunately, the House of Representatives did not concur with the Senate posture and the final budget bill deleted "state-side" funding.
In 1999, conservation and outdoor recreation groups are making a major effort nationally to restore "state-side" funding to a rejuvenated LWCF program. The offshore oil and gas leasing program needs to be re-authorized by Congress, providing a political opportunity to restore the "state-side" program. In New York State, Governor George Pataki formed the Empire State Task Force for Land & Water Conservation Funding with Commissioner John P. Cahill of the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and Commissioner Bernadette Castro as Co-chairs. ADK's Neil Woodworth and the Trail Conference's JoAnn Dolan were appointed to the Task Force to represent the outdoor recreation community.
OPRHP, DEC and the Task Force sponsored a highly successful LWCF summit in Albany on January 20 to lay the ground work for grassroots lobbying. Over 300 conservation leaders attended. Neil Woodworth, Meg Carr, Betty Lou Bailey, Fred Schroeder, Tom McGuire, Dave Pisaneschi, Andy Rawdon, John Eldridge, Jean Kerr, and Gary Haugland attended for ADK and the Trail Conference.
The current 106th Congress represents a great opportunity to restore LWCF as a permanent source of land acquisition funding for New York and New Jersey. President Clinton and key members of Congress from both parties are advocating proposals to restore funding to the LWCF. Each of the proposals contains a component that restores funding to the state-side of the LWCF. It would be premature to pick a favorite at this early stage of congressional deliberations. Neil Woodworth will visit New York's Congressional delegation in Mid-March while attending the American Hiking Society Trail Lobby Week. He will carry the message that ADK and the Trail Conference expect NY's senators and congress members to forge a bipartisan alliance to rejuvenate the Land and Water Conservation Fund. He will stress these points to Congress:
Whether it is to purchase the magnificent Tahawus - Upper Works parcel in the southern High Peaks or new additions to Sterling Forest, New York would greatly benefit from federal LWCF funds. Write a letter or a post card to your senators and congress member today. There is a sample letter included as a sidebar to this article. Your action today will ensure that your children and grandchildren will enjoy wild places across New York and the nation.
Dear Senator or Representative _________________:
I am writing to urge your support for restoration of the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). I ask that you actively support full funding for LWCF programs, especially the badly neglected state grant program.
The Land and Water Conservation Fund is a magnificent example of a partnership between Congress and the states. Thirty years ago, Congress promised the American people that each year revenues from federal offshore oil and gas receipts would support the purchase of state wilderness areas, state parks and urban recreation areas. The goal was to provide outdoor recreation opportunities for all Americans.
The Land and Water Conservation Fund has been an investment in the future of America and New York. LWCF monies resulted in the acquisition of nearly seven million acres of land and the creation of more than 37,000 parks and recreation projects nationwide. In New York, LWCF has funded 1,100 projects, including portions of Minnewaska and Allegany State Parks, the Santanoni Preserve in the High Peaks and the newly purchased Sterling Forest State Park. Many people travel to New York to visit these magnificent parks. They are truly national treasures. Many more county and municipal parks were funded.
Since 1995, Congress has not appropriated any money for the LWCF state grants program. As open space decreases in our state and more people desire outdoor recreation, New York needs its share of LWCF for state, county and municipal park projects more than ever before.
I strongly urge you to work with your congressional colleagues to ensure that the LWCF and especially, its state grant component, is restored and receives full funding.
Thank you for considering my views, I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,