The federal program that has helped pay for hundreds of millions of dollars in repairs at national parks and public lands across Oregon and California has expired, leaving the future of major infrastructure projects uncertain.
Congress created the National Parks and Public Lands Legacy Restoration Fund in 2020 to address a deferred maintenance backlog estimated at $35 billion. Supporters are now urging lawmakers to renew the bipartisan program before aging roads, water systems and visitor facilities deteriorate further.
Rebecca Knuffke, senior officer for conservation at Pew Charitable Trusts, said the need is becoming increasingly urgent.
“This happens with homes, every building, every type of infrastructure,” Knuffke said. “They have a lifespan, and many have already surpassed their expected lifespans.”
Knuffke said the fund has supported projects throughout the region. In California, it has invested more than $978 million in improvements to about 330 public land assets. Oregon has received $53.8 million to repair about 80 assets.
Projects have ranged from water filtration systems to visitor centers.
“Those investments create jobs,” Knuffke said. “They help support those local economies that rely on tourism.”
The fund is financed through revenues generated from natural resource development on federal lands rather than through general taxpayer funding. Supporters say that allows royalties from one use of public lands to be reinvested in maintaining them.
That funding structure has also prompted questions about the federal government's relationship with the mining industry.
The Government Accountability Office has reported difficulty identifying the ownership of some companies operating mines on federal lands because of complex corporate ownership structures. The agency has identified 872 active mining operations covering about 1.3 million acres of federal land.
Questions have also been raised about the federal government's investments in certain mining companies, including USA Rare Earth and MP Materials, as well as financial interests held by President Donald Trump's sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, in companies connected to mining operations. Critics say those relationships could present conflicts because the federal government regulates public lands while also investing in some mining projects.
Knuffke said she does not see the restoration fund itself as a conflict.
“I think that on our public lands, where we can use the royalties from one type of use and invest them in the protection of some of those treasures that make America great, I don't think that's a conflict,” Knuffke said.
Knuffke said advocates hope Congress will renew the fund during the nation's 250th anniversary year.
“We have this opportunity once again to pass this tremendous bipartisan bill,” Knuffke said.
She said more than half the Senate and about two-thirds of the House have expressed support for renewing the program.
Guest
- Rebecca Knuffke, senior officer for conservation, Pew Charitable Trusts
