Desert View Watchtower, Grand Canyon National Park

This week, legislation to fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund and address the deferred maintenance backlog at the National Park Service was introduced in the House. The Great American Outdoors Act (S. 3422, H.R 7092) was introduced by Rep. Joe Cunningham (D-SC), Rep. Mike Simpson (R-ID) and 10 other bipartisan members of Congress an like the Senate bill would fully fund the LWCF at $900 million annually, address the nearly $12 billion backlog at the National Park Service (43% is attributed to historic resources), and address the deferred maintenance backlog on other public lands like the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management.  The House bill is identical to the Senate version of the bill, which is expected to be brought to the Senate floor for a vote as early as next week.

The Senate bill was introduced in March after President Trump announced his support for fully funding the LWCF and the Restore Our Parks Act. Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said the bill would be brought up for a vote after the Memorial Day recess. In the House, House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) expressed his support for the bill and said he hopes it can be brought up for a vote after the House returns at the end of June. 

Earlier this month, more than 850 organizations and businesses signed on to a letter calling on Congress to support the Great American Outdoors Act amid efforts to stimulate the economy in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Preservation Action, the National Trust for Historic Preservation and others also included this important bill in our request to Congress to support historic preservation priorities in future stimulus legislation.

With a Senate vote expected as earlier as next week, urge your Senators to support the Great American Outdoors Act today!

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This week  President Trump signed an executive order instructing federal agencies to use their emergency and other authorities to bypass environmental reviews, like the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA), in order to expedite large infrastructure projects. The order cites the need to boost the economy amid the economic emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Large infrastructure projects identified includes highways, energy and transportation projects. Additionally, the order aims to speed up projects on federal lands, specifically directing the Department of Interior, Department of Agriculture, and Department of Defense to use emergency tools to avoid reviews. The order gives agencies 30 days to provide a summary report of projects that have been expedited.

NEPA requires agencies to examine the environmental impacts, including the impact on historic and cultural resources, proposed actions would have and consider alternatives, but does not mandate a particular outcome. It also gives people a chance to see how a project might affect them and weigh in on what decision the government should make.

The Trump administration has previously targeted environmental laws including NEPA, saying they are slow and burdensome. In January, the White House Council on Environmental Quality issued proposed revisions to NEPA that would have a dramatic impact on historic and cultural resources. Preservation Action submitted comments objecting to the revisions. The proposed revisions moved closer to final release this week, after the White House Council sent the rule to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs.

These attempts to bypass NEPA reviews on infrastructure projects would severely limit the consideration of environmental impacts and the ability of the public weigh in on how a project might affect their community. Preservation Action will continue to monitor these harmful attempts to undermine NEPA and any potential legal battles that could result from the executive order.