Oct 102019
 

Pictured: Heart Lake in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest As Shot From The Trail (Yes, that is mount Shasta on the Right)

Recently, I went on a couple short trips to the Pacific Northwest. I used a bunch of trails in National Forests, Lassen National Park and Crater Lake National Park. In my neck of California, Lassen is about 2 1/2 hours away, Crater Lake about 5. These are easy to get to as none of the trail heads are more than 15 miles (of windy forest service roads) from Weed or Mt. Shasta. Without the LWCF, these trails would fall in to disrepair and the roads would become undriveable.

The Trails I hiked and the access roads I used to get to them are all paid in part by HR3195, (the Land and Water Conservation Fund). 60% of the money is used for maintenance and upkeep.

If you’ve been to Morongo, Mojave, Seal Beach or the hills between OC and LA (or Riverside), Angel’s Crest, Big Bear, etc… you’ve been on land that the LCWF funds maintain.

Recently, Rob Bishop wrote an Op-Ed. He is the ranking Republican Member of some House Committee that oversees this stuff. It was on the Daily Caller which is how it caught my eye.

Politicians love creating new parks. It’s a cheap way (using someone else’s money) to increase name recognition and bona fides ahead of an election.

Unfortunately, maintaining our parks doesn’t have the same appeal. Why would a politician fix a leaky roof or repave a road when he or she could create a new park? I’ve never seen a federal candidate run for office on the campaign theme, “Vote for me, I fixed the park sewer system!”

Good stewardship isn’t flashy, but it’s essential if we are truly committed to our public lands. With the recent expiration of the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), we now have an opportunity to restore stewardship to our land management policies.

Bishop goes on to write about a couple other bills aimed at making sure that the lion’s share of the money is spent on maintenance projects.

The reason why I am part of the 82% that support this bill is that the money is taken from long since existing fees on Offshore Drilling. This is not a tax increase. The LWCF was permanently reauthorized in the budget deal of March 2019. What is at issue is making sure the funds are allocated to maintenance rather than buying new stuff.
Mount Shasta as Shot From the Pacific Crest Trail in the Shasta Trinity National Forest

In stark contrast to Government Policy that removes roads and closes off trails in some misguided effort to run people off the land, the LWCF increases access and makes sure the areas stay open.

Wherever there is adequate and well maintained infrastructure, there is commerce and tourism. Getting outdoors is also healthy.

The LWCF protects the rights of those with historic leases or ownership of parts of land within the boundaries of existing parks / forests, etc.

Having recently visited Lassen National Park and Crater Lake National Park, it was refreshing to see recent maintenance and upgrade projects get completed. The last time I was at Redwood National Park, several trails were closed. They appear to be all re-opened. I am also aware of repairs and re-openings on public lands in Eastern Placer and El Dorado Counties. The LWCF makes sure that more of this sort of stuff happens.

With the LWCF, anything federal will be maintained no matter the fiscal issues of the California State Government. (Remember the State Park System Scandal with hidden money?)

This is a good bill and we should all support it.

Sep 102018
 

Blogger’s Note: I am an avid hiker and outdoorsman. I am taking a break from campaign activity to address a blog to Congressman McCCarthy (CA-23), Steve Knight (CA-25), Congressman Ed Royce (CA-39) and Congressman Ken Calvert (CA-42) about an issue I care about. Thanks for reading… 

With over 50 years of history protecting our National Parks and recreation areas, the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) faces a critical crossroads this year.  As a man who has visited over 90 National Parks and who routinely hikes in National Forests, I think Congress should renew this historic funding to ensure that our Parks and recreation areas can continue receiving the funding and care needed to provide continued access.

The LWCF was originally enacted is 1964 by Congress and has protected and preserved thousands of acres of natural land throughout the United States. As a fellow Republican, I understand that this fund is one of the “Good” functions of the Government that actually expands access to the public to use their own land!

My favorite part of this program is the money for partnerships between the LWCF, local state departments and agencies to provide local preservation.  In the past 50 years, California has benefited from over $2.4 billion in LWCF funding, including many state assistance grants resulting in hundreds of projects completed throughout the state. It is my opinion that because of this money many of the most popular tourist areas have not been as severely affected as they otherwise would be by the mismanagement of Sacramento.

LWCF funding has been utilized to protect and preserve the Tahoe National Forest, Angeles National Forrest, the Santa Monica National Recreation Area, and the San Bernardino National Forest to name a few. Because of this program, places I love to go like the Redwoods, Lassen, Pt. Reyes, and many other parks/recreation areas remain open and accessible for local communities and visitors to enjoy and appreciate!

I have seen firsthand that there are entire areas in California almost completely dependent on tourism because of the decimation of the timber and mining industries by the State of California.

The Outdoor Industry Association has found that active outdoor recreation supports $92 billion in consumer spending in California, 691,000 jobs across California, generating $30.4 billion in wages and salaries, and produces $6.2 billion annually in state and local tax revenue.

I think you should support the permanent re-authorization of the LWCF! It will continue to provide essential funding for land preservation in our state while not increasing taxes; while continuing to contribute to the economic growth of our local communities.  For these reasons, I asking the four of you (and the your colleagues in the California GOP Delegation) for your support of the permanent re-authorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund.