Land and Water Conservation Fund: Appropriations for “Other Purposes”

Summary

The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) Act of 1965 (P.L. 88-578) created the LWCF in the Treasury as a funding source to implement the outdoor recreation goals set out by the act. The fund is authorized at $900 million annually through September 30, 2015. In general, monies in the fund are available for outdoor recreation purposes only if appropriated by Congress. The level of annual appropriations has varied widely since the origin of the fund.

The LWCF Act outlines uses of the fund for federal and state purposes. It lists the federal purposes for which the President is to allot LWCF funds “unless otherwise allotted in the appropriation Act making them available.” These purposes primarily relate to acquisition of lands and waters (and interests therein) by the federal government. With regard to state purposes, the act authorizes a matching grant program to states for recreation planning, acquisition of lands and waters (and interests therein), and development. Throughout the LWCF’s history, appropriations acts have provided funds for land acquisition and recreational grants to states.

Beginning in FY1998, appropriations also have been provided each year (except FY1999) to fund other purposes related to natural resources. Presidents have sought LWCF funds for a variety of purposes. Congress chooses which if any of these requests to fund, and it may choose other programs not suggested by the President. Appropriations have been provided for facility maintenance of the land management agencies, ecosystem restoration, the Historic Preservation Fund, the Payments in Lieu of Taxes program, the Forest Legacy program, State and Tribal Wildlife Grants under the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund, U.S. Geological Survey science and cooperative programs, and Bureau of Indian Affairs Indian Land and Water Claim Settlements, among other programs.

Since FY1998, a total of $2.4 billion has been appropriated for other purposes, of a total LWCF appropriation of $17.1 billion over the history of the fund (since FY1965). FWS and the Forest Service (FS) have received the largest shares of the total appropriations for other purposes, about $1.3 billion (56%) and $0.8 billion (34%), respectively, from FY1998 to FY2015. Several agencies shared the remaining $0.2 billion (10%) of the appropriations.

Both the dollar amounts and the percentages of annual LWCF appropriations for other purposes have varied widely since FY1998. The dollar amounts have ranged from $0 in FY1999 to $456.0 million in FY2001, with an average of $131.2 million annually. The highest percentage of annual funds provided for other purposes occurred in FY2006 and FY2007 (59% in both years). In some years, the appropriation for other purposes was significantly less than the Administration requested. For instance, in FY2008 the George W. Bush Administration sought $313.1 million for other purposes, or 83% of the total request. The FY2008 appropriation for other purposes was $101.3 million, or 40% of the LWCF total.

In earlier years, several other purposes typically were funded each year from LWCF. Since FY2008, funds have been appropriated annually only for grants under two programs: Forest Legacy and Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund. These two programs and a third grant program funded in the past from LWCF—FWS State and Tribal Wildlife Grants—have received about three-quarters ($1.8 billion, 76%) of the total appropriation for other purposes since FY1998.