On August 4, 2020, President Trump, during his first administration, signed the Great American Outdoors Act into law. The landmark legislation marked a historic investment in protecting America’s public lands by addressing a backlog of deferred maintenance and repairs in national parks, forests, wildlife refuges and other federal lands, protecting natural and cultural resources and boosting local economies. It also permanently and fully funded the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), a program for which the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation advocated for years.
“It cannot be overstated how important this program is for the future of conservation,” Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation President and CEO Kyle Weaver said at the time. “It is vital for elk, other wildlife, public access and for safeguarding America’s hunting, fishing and other outdoor-related recreational traditions.”
RMEF played a key and intimate role in getting that legislation across the finish line. One year earlier in August 2019, RMEF worked with partners to close the Falls Creek project (see above photo) in western Montana, which conserved and opened public access to 442 acres of prime habitat for elk, mule deer, grizzly and black bears, wolverines, lynx, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, mountain lions, fish, birds and a slew other wildlife species along the Dearborn River and Montana’s Rocky Mountain Front. It also greatly improved access to 27,000 acres of public land beyond the project acreage.
Fast forward to 2020. In a bipartisan effort, the U.S. House and Senate each passed the Great American Outdoor Act. Montana Sen. Steve Daines and former Colorado senator Cory Gardner then secured a meeting with President Trump and several of his staffers. Daines then reached out to RMEF to get high-quality maps, photos and other detailed information about the Falls Creek project. During their meeting, Daines shared project details with the president including the fact that $250,000 in LWCF funds helped close the deal. President Trump said that information “sealed the deal” for him and signed the bill shortly thereafter.
To date, RMEF utilized millions of dollars in LWCF funding for 114 projects across 14 states to conserve and protect 240,851 acres of America’s most important elk habitat and open or improve public access to 474,229 acres for hunting, fishing, hiking, camping, wildlife viewing and other outdoor recreation.
To recognize the fifth anniversary, the Department of the Interior waived all entrance fees on this day to Interior-managed public lands, which includes all national parks.
(Photo credit: Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation)