The Land and Water Conservation Fund has benefited New Mexico hunters, anglers and the general public for half a century, but now a Utah congressman wants to eviscerate the very program that has built shooting ranges, boat ramps and purchased land for public use that provides some of the best elk hunting in the state.
Rep. Rob Bishop has introduced legislation that would cripple the Land and Water Conservation Fund under the guise of “reform.” New Mexico Wildlife Federation President John Crenshaw today urged the entire New Mexico congressional delegation to reject Bishop’s proposal in the strongest possible terms.
“The Land and Water Conservation Fund has been used for 50-plus years to provide and improve outdoor recreation opportunities for all Americans, and New Mexico hunters and anglers are deeply offended that Rep. Bishop now wants to cripple it,” said Crenshaw.
“Over and over this fund has helped our state, not only by improving our quality of life and getting New Mexicans outdoors but by creating outdoor recreation jobs worth millions of dollars a year,” he continued.“This attack on the Land and Water Conservation Fund is the worst kind of federal overreach, pure and simple.”
LWCF revenue comes from offshore oil royalties, not taxpayers’ pockets, and over the years it has been used for a wide range of outdoor recreation facilities, from municipal parks and playgrounds to improvements in New Mexico’s national forests. LWCF was crucial in establishing Valles Caldera National Preserve, one of the crown jewels among public lands in New Mexico.
When Congress created the LWCF in 1964, the legislation passed with broad bipartisan support because it aimed to help get Americans outdoors. Rep. Bishop’s bill, however, completely subverts that idea, and would actually use LWCF funds to promote offshore energy exploration.
“Rob Bishop is not interested in reforming the Land and Water Conservation Fund. He is interested in killing it off permanently,” said Oscar Simpson, chairman of the New Mexico chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers. “He and people like our own Rep. Steve Pearce would like nothing more than to sell off and lock up the public lands that sportsmen have relied on for generations. This new bill is just one more step in that direction.”
In late September, a small group of congressional leaders, including Bishop, successfully blocked the reauthorization of LWCF. New Mexico Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, along with Reps. Michelle Lujan Grisham and Ben Ray Lujan, have been staunch supporters of the Land and Water Conservation Fund. Now New Mexico sportsmen and women are hoping the New Mexico congressional delegation can revive the bipartisan spirit that created LWCF 50 years ago and prevent Rep. Bishop’s measure from moving through Congress.
“This is an era when America needs more outdoor recreation opportunity, not less,” Crenshaw said. “To let Rep. Bishop’s measure pass would be a crime against everyone, but especially the hunting and fishing public. All we can hope is that cooler heads prevail as this bill moves forward.”
