North American Wetlands Conservation Extension Act

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 925 reauthorizes conservation projects under the North American Wetlands Conservation Act, NAWCA, through fiscal year 2024.

I readily concede this is a popular program. Even without an authorization, the appropriators put $42 million into this last year. The sponsors of the bill, obviously, want more, authorizing $60 million a year. That is higher than any appropriation to date. I am concerned that, in a time where we are running record and perilous deficits, we ought to consider the level which some of these programs should be funded.

Much of the money under NAWCA is used to obtain conservation easements and wetlands outright to benefit migratory birds and fish. According to the Fish and Wildlife Service, the program has benefited almost 30 million acres of wetland habitat in North America since its inception 30 years ago. It is a very good thing.

Here is the problem, though: The Federal Government is already landlord to 640 million acres of the country and is doing a poor job of maintaining what we already have. For example, the National Park Service is facing a nearly $12 billion deferred maintenance backlog. The question I would raise today is whether we really need to authorize increased funding to buy even more land.

It would be one thing if Congress had taken strong action to address this backlog by moving H.R. 1225 by Congressman Rob Bishop, the former chairman and currently ranking member of the Natural Resources Committee.

That was a favorably reported bill. It has overwhelming support with 329 bipartisan cosponsors. That bill would take excess funds from new energy development and target these deteriorating lands so that people as well as migratory birds and fish can enjoy them.

I recognize that H.R. 925 simply authorizes an existing program, but it is imperative to take into account the realities that our current Federal lands are facing. Acquiring more land when we can't take care of the land we already control is not a wise use of our resources.

Mr. Speaker, this is, undoubtedly, a popular program. It does well serve public recreation and use, the very purpose of our public lands, and I certainly don't oppose it.

But I do want to close with this warning: We are continuing to acquire more and more land while we are failing to take care of the enormous estates that we already hold.

Louie Gohmert, my colleague on the Natural Resources Committee, has compared our Federal lands policy to the old miser in town whose mansion is dilapidated, whose yard is overgrown with weeds, and whose paint is peeling because he spends all of his time and money plotting how he is going to acquire his neighbor's property.

I would like to hope that the bipartisan support for this bill will be accompanied soon with bipartisan support for Mr. Bishop's bill, H.R. 1225, which would actually take the resources that we are generating from the public lands to assure that we are taking proper care of our public lands.

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