Ayotte Renews Call for Immediate Passage of LWCF Reauthorization

WASHINGTON, D.C. – October 9, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) again called for the immediate passage of bipartisan legislation she helped introduce with Senators Richard Burr (R-NC) and Michael Bennet (D-CO) to permanently reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). Ayotte has been working to renew LWCF over the past year and a half, and gone to the Senate floor repeatedly in the past week to try to call up a vote on reauthorizing the program. Unfortunately, some senators continue to object to Ayotte’s request.

LWCF has helped protect thousands of acres in New Hampshire, including Mine Falls Park in Ayotte’s hometown of Nashua and the White Mountain National Forest.

“This has been a very important program for preserving our outdoor spaces and the beauty of our country – particularly my home state of New Hampshire… We have a bipartisan bill – the Burr-Bennet-Ayotte bill – … that would permanently reauthorize LWCF… We have 60 votes for permanent authorization that people on both sides feel very strongly about… And in New Hampshire, the Land and Water Conservation Fund has been used on 650 projects, from every aspect of our state – from Sunapee to Ossipee, to Berlin, to Seabrook, to my home city of Nashua… This weekend, according to New Hampshire travel officials, 660,000 visitors are expected to travel to New Hampshire over the Columbus Day holiday. We welcome them, but they’re coming to experience the beauty and iconic fall foliage of New Hampshire and the Land and Water Conservation Fund has given them to opportunity to enjoy our great outdoors,” said Ayotte.

After Senator Ayotte registered disappointment that some of her colleagues had objected, Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN), also a cosponsor of the bill to permanently reauthorize LWCF, thanked Ayotte for her leadership in the effort to reestablish the fund saying, “Madam President, first I’d like to say I join Senator Ayotte and thank her for her leadership on the Land and Water Conservation Fund. She’s been out front on this, she cares about it, she’s effective, she works well with other members of the Senate and my bet is that she will succeed before very long… Senator Burr of North Carolina and Senator Ayotte of New Hampshire have been among the most vigorous supporters of the Land and Water Conservation Fund. I join with them and I look forward to their success. ”

LWCF is an account in the U.S. Treasury that collects a small percentage of offshore oil and gas leasing receipts, specifically intended to be used for conservation projects. At the local, state, and federal levels, LWCF provides grants to help conserve our natural resources and protect outdoor recreation opportunities, working forests, and wildlife areas – without using taxpayer dollars.