Talking Points

Conservation funding legislation:

• Allows for public access to quiet, undisturbed natural areas;
• Places priority on projects priced below appraised value;
• Places priority on areas where matching funds are available;
• Places priority on areas that complete or encompass full ecosystems;
• Places priority on areas harboring endangered species;
• Requires a dedicated funding source;
• Requires the adoption of a management plan for protected areas; and
• Requires an objective review board to analyze all project proposals.

Protecting land is a necessary means to preserving biodiversity and ecological integrity.

• Protected, undisturbed natural areas provide for a stronger economy, a healthier environment, and more recreational opportunities for surrounding communities.
• Every state in the Union contains a part of the twenty-one identified “most endangered” ecosystems in the United States. Protecting natural areas now ensures that these ecosystems will not deteriorate to the point where their component species are in danger of extinction. (see Defenders of Wildlife report: Saving Biodiversity: A Status Report on State Laws, Policies and Programs)

State funding ensures long-term land protection for future generations.

• Dedicated funding signifies a state’s commitment to conservation.
• Citizens appreciate protected areas that benefit all of society.
• The state’s commitment can encourage local communities to model a similar funding device, allowing each conservation dollar to go even further.
• States must take this action because local governments lack economic resources and proper coordination and federal agencies are apt to overlook state projects that are less alluring in the face of large-scale, high-profile national priorities. Additionally, federal funding for state conservation projects from the dwindling Land and Water Conservation Fund (LCWF) has been heavily cut. The LCWF budget for state grants for FY 2004 was slashed to $94 million, down $50 million from FY 2002.(1)

Good state funding legislation:

• Is innovative and inclusive;
• Is committed to assisting local governments with their own land preservation goals;
• Allows nonprofit conservation organizations and private citizens to be project sponsors;
• Allows for other methods of protection including life estates, conservation easements, and rights-of-first-refusal; and
• Includes matching fund provisions to ensure that each dollar spent goes further by requiring matching funds.