House passes GAOA by voice vote today

[44hunter45]

Good news. The bill is heading to the President's desk.

Thank you to all those who weighed in with their U.S. Representatives.

Cracking a beer and getting ready for the next fight....

 

[Ben Long]

Funny how sometimes the things that REALLY MATTER like this bill pass and people go "huh, yeah, what was that one again?" Meanwhile, some emotionally triggering and utterly symbolic bill that will never see the light of day comes up and the internet goes berserk. But the bottom line, this is THE biggest deal for habitat and access in my 30 years of reporting and politicking on the issue. Of all the bullshit out there, this one matters. This is the one that will matter to our kids and grandkids. Their future freedom depends on this bill. Congrats to all the many groups that worked on it. ONe more signature and it's real.

 

[wyoelkfan15]

I'm ashamed of my Wyoming state senators and rep.

 

[brushcreek]

anyone have a summary or cliff notes version of what this bill does?

 

[Wildabeest]

The bill is heading to the President's desk.

Is anyone aware of any recent comments the President has made regarding this bill? The only things I’m finding was a tweet from early March. A LOT has happened since then. I’m not convinced this is a slam dunk. I’m sure the opposition is still fighting to get this vetoed, so we cannot take our foot off the gas and assume it’s done deal until the sharpie ink is dried on his signature! Great work by a lot of HT’s on this. Let’s keep up the pressure.

 

[cedahm]

Is anyone aware of any recent comments the President has made regarding this bill? The only things I’m finding was a tweet from early March. A LOT has happened since then. I’m not convinced this is a slam dunk. I’m sure the opposition is still fighting to get this vetoed, so we cannot take our foot off the gas and assume it’s done deal until the sharpie ink is dried on his signature! Great work by a lot of HT’s on this. Let’s keep up the pressure.

He tweeted this yesterday:

 

[jlmatthew]

He tweeted this yesterday:

View attachment 147764

Now everyone will be against it!

 

[Wildabeest]

That’s awesome! Had not seen that and feel much better now. Carry on!

 

[BoulderBulls]

I'm ashamed of my Wyoming state senators and rep.

I'm ashamed of my rep Colorados Ken Buck

 

[Irrelevant]

Funny how sometimes the things that REALLY MATTER like this bill pass and people go "huh, yeah, what was that one again?" Meanwhile, some emotionally triggering and utterly symbolic bill that will never see the light of day comes up and the internet goes berserk. But the bottom line, this is THE biggest deal for habitat and access in my 30 years of reporting and politicking on the issue. Of all the bullshit out there, this one matters. This is the one that will matter to our kids and grandkids. Their future freedom depends on this bill. Congrats to all the many groups that worked on it. ONe more signature and it's real.

Apparently it's also promoting the destruction of the earth.

Is a big win for conservation a blow to climate action?

As extinction and climate crises loom, the Great American Outdoors Act and recreation industry continue to rely on oil money.

www.hcn.org

One quote I wish they would have kept out.
“You have to give kudos to the Republicans for shifting the conversation so far to the right that the premise has been agreed to that we should fund conservation with the destruction of the earth,” said Brett Hartl, government affairs director for the Center for Biological Diversity.
or
All of these plans are a far cry from the bill currently being celebrated as a major win for conservation and public lands. “We need to be sure we’re not pretending our work is done; this money is not a panacea for reaching conservation goals,” said Kate Kelly, the director of public lands for the Center for American Progress and an Obama-era Interior Department senior adviser

The Bill isn't even signed and we're already past the celebration.

 

[MO Betta]

Well, I agree with the portion of the quote from Kate Kelly you posted. The works of society on conservation will never be done, no matter what bill is passed in congress. The issues we face aren't static.

The portion left out, eh. I imagine everyone here knows that the LWCF isn't the only current source of conservation funding, this is just one piece. The article doesn't seem to recognize that very much. In the future, the funding sources on LWCF will need to be re-examined, or new legislation created. Contributions by non-consumptive users that rival hunters, shooters, and anglers would be most welcome in the present - but this is a big win in the interim while we're still in a period of major reliance on extraction.

As for the rest of the article and the input from CBD, well, I've got some paper in the bathroom that I give more value to.

 

[Irrelevant]

Well, I agree with the portion of the quote from Kate Kelly you posted. The works of society on conservation will never be done, no matter what bill is passed in congress. The issues we face aren't static.

The portion left out, eh. I imagine everyone here knows that the LWCF isn't the only current source of conservation funding, this is just one piece. The article doesn't seem to recognize that very much. In the future, the funding sources on LWCF will need to be re-examined, or new legislation created. Contributions by non-consumptive users that rival hunters, shooters, and anglers would be most welcome in the present - but this is a big win in the interim while we're still in a period of major reliance on extraction.

As for the rest of the article and the input from CBD, well, I've got some paper in the bathroom that I give more value to.

I don't disagree with the sentiment of the article, but GD, could we at least wait until the damn thing is signed before tearing it apart.

 

[Ben Long]

I have little patience for left-hand critics who say it's bad to renew LWCF because it is based on off-shore oil royalties. If we had walked away from LWCF when it expired two years ago, what would have happened? We would have walked away from hundreds of millions of conservation funding, and the oil would still have been drilled and sold. The royalties just would have been spent on something else, something probably far more damaging to the environment. So, yes, let's wean our selves from our addiction from oil (for a lot of reasons) but success is built on success. You win by building relationships and alliances across party lines toward incremental goals. Like TR said, I admire the person who goes one yard, not those who theorize about the 1000th yard.