Interior eyes Land and Water Conservation Fund for maintenance

David Jordan, CQ-Roll Call on Jun 3, 2025

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WASHINGTON — The Interior Department is asking Congress to use Land and Water Conservation Fund money for deferred maintenance on public lands, expanding the fund for a purpose that wasn’t among those listed when lawmakers strengthened the fund in a 2020 law signed by President Donald Trump.

The fiscal 2026 detailed budget request released Monday asks Congress for $387 million from the fund for deferred maintenance programs for the National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Bureau of Land Management. The request also asks for $468 million for state and local grants and $45 million for federal land acquisition.

The 2020 law included a provision permanently funding the LWCF at $900 million annually. More than 80 House Republicans and more than 25 Senate Republicans joined Democrats to pass that law with big majorities.

The LWCF, established in 1964 by Congress, is funded by royalties from offshore drilling to acquire new federal land to help make it easier to conduct prescribed fire treatments, preserve wildlife habitats and enhance recreational opportunities, among other purposes. The LWCF also provides grants for the preservation and maintenance of parks, forests, recreation areas and cultural sites.

But deferred maintenance isn’t an authorized use of the LWCF, and the request calls for language that would make that possible. The Biden administration didn’t request any of the LWCF funds go to deferred maintenance over four years.

“Instead of adding more land and infrastructure to the Federal Government’s already bloated real property portfolio, the Budget proposes to repurpose $276.1 million for a new deferred maintenance program within LWCF, which can be used by BLM, NPS, and FWS to address our maintenance needs,” the Interior request said. “LWCF will continue to fund grants to States that support locally led outdoor recreation.”

The Interior Department’s $900 million budget for the fund includes $682 million that would flow through its own agencies and programs and another $219 million for the U.S. Forest Service, an agency within the Agriculture Department.

Amy Lindholm, director of federal affairs for the Appalachian Mountain Club and spokesperson for the LWCF Coalition, said in a statement that using the funds to pay for “non-LWCF maintenance responsibilities would break the promise to the American people.”

“This would fly in the face of Congress’s overwhelming bipartisan mandate, damage the outdoor recreation economy and communities across the country, and undo the President’s conservation legacy by returning to the days of diverted funds for non-LWCF purposes,” Lindholm said.

The 2020 law separately provided for using the National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund — authorizing up to $1.9 billion annually — to address the maintenance backlog of the National Park Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Forest Service and the Bureau of Indian Education.

Members of both parties have pushed to address maintenance.

The National Park Service estimates the backlog within that agency alone is over $23 billion.

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