Medhini Kumar, medhini.kumar@sierraclub.org
WASHINGTON, DC – The House Appropriations Committee today is taking up the FY2023 Interior spending bill. The bill would provide robust funding increases for endangered, threatened, and imperiled species conservation and outdoor access and equity work.
In response, Bradley Williams, Associate Director of Legislative and Administrative Advocacy released the following statement:
“We welcome this landmark increase in funding for our country’s most vulnerable species and access to our most treasured lands and waters, and hope that Congress will fully adopt these figures as the legislation moves forward.
“For the thousands of plant and animal species dangerously threatened as a result of the intersecting biodiversity and climate crises, this additional funding could be a lifeline. Biodiversity is essential to a healthy, livable planet for all, and without significant investments to protect and restore our wildlife and habitats, we risk the delicate balance that sustains life as we know it.”
BILL HIGHLIGHTS
Bureau of Land Management: This legislation would provide increased funding for wildlife and land conservation, including $81 million for sage-grouse conservation and $37 million for threatened and endangered species program.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: The legislation would provide $355 million for endangered species conservation, an increase of $77 million above last year’s budget; $25.9 million to protect imperiled animals and plants still waiting for protection under the Endangered Species Act, an increase of $4.7 million above last year’s levels and the largest increase to the agency’s listing program in decades; and $574 million for National Wildlife Refuge System, $55 million above the FY 2022 enacted level. The Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership (ORLP) would receive $125 million.
National Park Service: This legislation would provide Every Kid Outdoors (EKO) $25 million in funding. It would also provide $171 million for the Historic Preservation Fund, which disperses grants to preserve the sites and stories of underrepresented community civil rights.
Bureau of Indian Affairs: This legislation would provide $4.4 billion for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, an increase of $778 million above the FY 2022 enacted level.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.