The Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies is Pleased about the Passage of the Public Lands Bill

Washington D.C. (March 13, 2019)- The Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies was pleased to see President Trump sign into law S.47, the John D. Dingell Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act (formerly known as the Natural Resources Management Act). This bipartisan legislation permanently authorizes the Land and Water Conservation Fund, a significant tool for increasing recreational access to public lands and supporting fish and wildlife habitat. This public lands package also contains more than 100 local and regional public lands bills that aim to benefit sportsmen and women.

“The Association is delighted to see the Land and Water Conservation Fund has a secure future,” said Ed Carter, President of the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies and Executive Director of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. “We look forward to working with our federal partners and supporting the Land and Water Conservation Fund to invest in clean water and productive land and wildlife habitat across the nation.”

The Land and Water Conservation Fund works in partnership with federal, state and local efforts to protect land in our national parks, national wildlife refuges, national forests, national trails, and other public lands. The program’s goal is to preserve working forests and ranchlands; to support state and local parks and playgrounds, to preserve battlefields and other historic and cultural sites and to provide the tools that communities need to meet their diverse conservation and recreation needs.

The bill was named in honor of former Congressman John Dingell who passed away last month. The Michigan Democrat was a lifelong outdoorsman and tireless conservation champion, responsible for leading many of our nation’s landmark conservation bills during his 59 years in Congress.

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The Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies represents North America’s fish and wildlife agencies to advance sound, science-based management and conservation of fish and wildlife and their habitats in the public interest. The Association represents its state agency members on Capitol Hill and before the Administration to advance favorable fish and wildlife conservation policy and funding and works to ensure that all entities work collaboratively on the most important issues. The Association also provides member agencies with coordination services on cross-cutting as well as species-based programs that range from birds, fish habitat and energy development to climate change, wildlife action plans, conservation education, leadership training and international relations. Working together, the Association’s member agencies are ensuring that North American fish and wildlife management has a clear and collective voice.