America the Beautiful Act

We've been sharing information about the US Senate's America the Beautiful Act recently, and distributing postcards for folks to message their representatives in support of the bill. Here we provide an update on the status of the Act, which reauthorizes the Legacy Restoration Fund to provide resources addressing the substantial backlog of maintenance projects we have on our public lands. The US Senate officially introduced the America the Beautiful Act (S. 1547) a few weeks ago and it is up to 64 co-sponsors, which is above the number needed to pass the bill in the Senate. The US House introduced their bill on Monday, calling it the Great American Outdoors Act 250. The House committee leading this effort held a hearing in Hot Springs, AR recently, complete with moving testimony from Kevin Costner (at minute 37). The Senate and House bills both reauthorize LRF at the same funding level, though have some differences in implementation and other details. There will have to be agreement between the versions once each bill passes both chambers, but both bills are very constructive. The timing for when we can expect either bill to pass is uncertain but we will keep you posted. If you sent in postcards to your representatives, we thank you! And if you would like to send out a postcard or two, let us know and we will find a way to get them to you. Just send a message to communications@amc-wma.org.