Simpson Led Outdoors Bill Heads to Trump’s Desk

The Great American Outdoors Act fixes public lands and funds LWCF

Washington, D.C. - On Wednesday, legislation authored by Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson passed the House of Representatives by a large bipartisan vote of 310-107. The bill permanently funds the existing Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) which increases access to public lands. The bill also maintains public lands by creating a new fund to address the backlog of deferred maintenance in National Parks, National Forests, Bureau of Land Management assets, Wildlife Refuges, and Bureau of Indian Education school construction.

Idaho’s National Forests have some of the largest deferred maintenance needs, such as roads and trails, while Yellowstone National Park has over $585 million in deferred maintenance costs. The bill does not spend taxpayer funds but instead utilizes existing funding from energy production on federal lands and waters. The legislation is based off a framework of bipartisan legislation the Congressman Simpson originally authored in 2017 called the LAND Act. The bill is supported by both Idaho and national conservation groups in addition to President Trump.

“I am thrilled to see this legislation on its way to President Trump’s desk where he will sign the bill into law,” said Simpson. “Not only does this bill support hundreds of thousands of jobs, but it protects and maintains our public lands for generations that aren’t even born yet. I grew up on the doorstep of Yellowstone, and so many communities in Idaho benefit from the outdoor access and the economic impacts of our public lands. The Great American Outdoors Act ensures that projects are vetted by Congress annually, funds the programs without using taxpayer funds, and continues important state- based projects like greenbelts, parks, and community pools. Bottom line, this bill is great for Idaho and public lands across this country.” 

The bill has a wide range of support from sportsmen groups, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and the Secretary of the Interior, David Bernhardt. Secretary Bernhardt recently penned an op-ed in The Hill that notes the Great American Outdoors Act is, “the most significant legislative accomplishment for conservation stewardship.”

This historic legislation will help preserve public lands and visitor access for generations to come, while also creating jobs and positive economic impacts for local, often rural, communities. In 2019, over 327 million national park visits led to $21 billion in direct spending at hotels, restaurants, outfitters, and other amenities in gateway communities, supporting over 340,000 jobs and generating over $40 billion in total economic output. Nationally, outdoor recreation contributes $778 billion in consumer spending and supports 5.2 million American jobs. A  recent study found that components of the Great American Outdoors Act alone will support over 100,000 direct and indirect jobs.

The Senate passed the bill by a large bipartisan vote of 73-25 and President Trump is expected to sign the bill in the coming weeks.

With the launch of Mars Perseverance Rover, history was made and it had Idaho's fingerprints all over it thanks to the incredible work being done at the Idaho National Laboratory .

Simpson Joins Bipartisan, Bicameral Group of Lawmakers Introduce Major Legislation to Expand Funding to Restore America’s National Forests

The REPLANT Act increases funding and helps the U.S. Forest Service prioritize and reduce the backlog of 1.3 million forestland acres in need of replanting within ten years

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Rob Portman (R-Ohio.), and Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and U.S. Representatives Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.), Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), Kim Schrier, M.D. (D-Wash.), and Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.), introduced the Repairing Existing Public Land by Adding Necessary Trees Act or the REPLANT Act, legislation to expand funding for the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) to carry out reforestation projects in U.S. forestland damaged by events such as wildfires, insects and disease, while creating more than 48,000 jobs over the next ten years.

To address the Forest Service’s reforestation backlog, the bill removes the current $30 million annual funding cap for the Reforestation Trust Fund, the primary source of funding for USFS’s replanting needs, making an average of $123 million annually available for reforestation in National Forests. In addition, the REPLANT Act will direct USFS to quantify the backlog of replanting needs, reduce delays by expanding stewardship contracting, and encourage state and Tribal partnerships. Among other associated activities, reforestation includes planting tree seedlings on forests that are unlikely to regenerate on their own in order to reestablish native plants and ensure the health of ecosystems and wildlife that depend on forests. Replanting forests is an effective way to create jobs in rural America, support natural ecosystems and improve natural carbon sequestration. Estimates show that the REPLANT Act would help plant 410,000 acres, or 123 million trees annually, for a total of 4.1 million acres (1.23 billion trees) over the next ten years.

“In Idaho, we are blessed with an abundance of forests,” said Simpson. “However with forests comes wildfires, and from wildfires you lose precious natural resources such as trees. Through the Reforestation Trust Fund we can replant these trees in our national forests, without using taxpayer funds. This will benefit our environment through carbon sequestration, our economy through job creation in rural communities, and recreation all across the country. I am pleased this bill has the support of Secretary Perdue and a bipartisan, bicameral, and diverse group of stakeholders who are on the ground replanting our national forests.”

USFS has estimated that in FY 2018, 80 percent of its reforestation needs were attributed to wildfires. With only approximately 15 percent of the national forest tree planting backlog addressed each year at current funding levels, this legislation will help provide much-needed resources to the Forest Service to address reforestation needs. Funding for the Reforestation Trust Fund comes from tariffs levied on wood products entering the United States. In addition to restoring forest health across the country, the legislation will support rural employment and enhance recreational opportunities within national forests.

The REPLANT Act has received widespread support from a variety of groups including American Forests, The National Wildlife Federation, The Nature Conservancy, Evangelical Environmental Network, The Audubon Society, The Forest Stewards Guild, Green Forests Work, the Trust for Public Land, the Bipartisan Policy Center, Longleaf Alliance, and the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable.

The full text of the bill can be found HERE. A one-page summary of the bill can be found HERE, and a background summary HERE. Statements of support from organizations can be found HERE.