SCHUMER URGES NEW FUNDING FOR FEDERAL PARKS PROGRAM WHICH COULD RESTORE JONES BEACH FIREWORKS AND HELP UNDO CUTS TO NYS PARKS ON LONG ISLAND; FUNDING COULD BE PART OF NEW SENATE ENERGY BILL
Schumer to Support Full Funding of Land and Water Conservation Fund in New Senate Energy Bill; Fund Was Established 40 Years Ago With Funds from Offshore Drilling
U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer announed yesterday a new Senate energy bill to be unveiled this week that could provide the funding necessary to help restore cuts to the New York State Parks Department allowing it to restore the annual Jones Beach fireworks display, providing the necessary funding for restoration of eroded beaches on Long Island, and help reopen parks throughout the state. The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), funded through offshore oil and gas drilling royalties has historically been authorized at $900 million per year to support outdoor recreational facilities, but Congress has only appropriated the full allotment twice in the last 40 years. The new energy bill, set to be released this coming week, would provide significantly more funding for the program.
"These dollars, already being collected by oil and gas drilling companies, have hardly been used for their intended purpose and should be spent on parks and outdoor recreation as Congress intended." said Schumer. "In the last year we have seen park closures and programs New Yorkers have come to expect eliminated because of squeezed state budgets. By providing the state more funding through the Land and Water Conservation Fund, the State Parks Department will have greater flexibility to restore cuts to popular parks, helping to restore programming like the Jones Beach July 4th Fireworks. The new energy bill that will be introduced this week will finally correct this problem."
For over 40 years, the LWCF has used revenue collected from offshore oil and gas development to purchase lands from willing sellers for the purposes of conservation and to provide grants to states for recreation planning, acquisition of lands and waters, and facility development. It is authorized at a spending level $900 million per year, however, Congress has fully funded the program only twice and rarely has the fund come close to matching the full amount authorized. Appropriations over the years have varied wildly and have been a mere fraction of the total authorized to be collected through drilling royalties. The result is a program that moves forward in fits and starts and a loss of programming and support for our parks systems. Schumer said that on Long Island, LWCF funding could help preserve the great Parks legacy left by the late Robert Moses.
At its high point in 1979, New York State received roughly $24 million from the LWCF, which was used to provide grants to municipalities and to undertake State Park development and land acquisition projects. Since 1965, the LWCF has partially funded 1,250 projects within the state. Virtually every community in the New York has acquired and/or developed outdoor recreational facilities with the help of the LWCF.
Over the past year, due to severe state budget shortfalls, the New York State Parks Department has had to close recreational areas and cut back operations throughout Long Island and the state. Funding from LWCF to the New York State Parks Department for outdoor recreation projects would relieve pressure on its strained budget allowing the state to focus its resources on other priorities, like programming at Jones Beach, upgrades to Robert Moses State Park, and the reopening of Brookhaven State Park and Nissequogue River Park.
"These funds, obtained from oil and gas drilling royalties, are a fitting way to enhance our parks and restore the quality of life Long Island residents have come to expect," continued Schumer. "With the passage of an energy bill that includes more funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund the absence of 4th of July fireworks on Jones Beach could be a one-time event."
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