On Capitol Hill these days there seems to be a fever that is pushing politicians to call for more and more budget cuts — often without even knowing the impact of the cuts — and that has led land agencies to look for other forms of funding, such as raising entrance fees.
Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge [...]

The National Wildlife Refuge Association has posted the latest news on the ongoing budget wars in Congress:

Nearly a quarter of the way through the fiscal year, Congress at last passed a spending bill for the Department of the Interior. The final bill, a compromise between the House and the Senate, included a $6 million cut [...]

From the Land and Water Conservation Fund Coalition:
DC—In a letter to President Obama, more than 100 economists and academics in related disciplines today issued a strong call for the President to “create jobs and support businesses by investing in our public lands infrastructure and establishing new protected areas such as parks, wilderness, and monuments.”
Members of [...]

The Washington Post recently ran an article titled, “Land and Water Conservation Fund under attack from Republicans in Congress,” which highlights the recent aggressive efforts by Republicans to undermine the LWCF’s ability to protect land in America.
The LWCF is a federal program that was established by Congress in 1964 to provide funds and matching grants [...]

Today is the 4th anniversary of the founding of this blog — Refuge Watch.
The National Wildlife Refuge System has never faced threats to its existence and its health as great as it does now. The Refuge System is a part of the federal government that is run well, run cheaply considering its size, and run [...]

CNN Money recently posted a video highlighting the budget attack that the House GOP has mounted against the National Wildlife Refuge System in their current appropriations bill. If enacted, H.R. 2584 would:

Completely close or eliminate major programs at 128 National Wildlife Refuges
Eliminate 275 Refuge Staff
Eliminate virtually any new land acquisitions or conservation easements under the [...]

This week the Cooperative Alliance for Refuge Enhancement (CARE) issued a press release and a report which warns that unless Congress provides adequate funding for the Refuge System, the economic benefits refuges provide, along with the lands, waters, wildlife, and recreation and education opportunities that refuges were established to protect, could be in jeopardy. [...]

If the federal government shuts down now or in the near future due to budget reasons, what will it mean for refuges? According to the Department of the Interior shutdown fact sheet:

Visitors to national parks, wildlife refuges, and public lands should be advised that -

The National Park Service, Fish and Wildlife Service and Bureau of [...]

As Congress and the White House continue to debate about the House GOP budget, which guts funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, the Nature Conservancy in California is touting the wonderful impact that the Land and Water Conservation Fund has had on protecting prime natural areas within the state.

Dan Roth with the Nature [...]

The National Wildlife Refuge Association has issued an alert for refuge advocates who are needed to protect funding for the National Wildlife Refuge System.
The House of Representatives’ Continuing Resolution (CR) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 proposes cuts to current funding by at least $60 billion across non-defense, discretionary programs. This includes a $12 million [...]

In case you’ve been living in a cave the past week, the House Republicans have officially hijacked the budget process and are now using it to carpet bomb every environmental protection law and regulation that their ideology (which is always aligned with big business) rejects.
House Speaker John Boehner once talked about not overplaying the [...]

The National Wildlife Refuge Association has posted a video featuring Desiree Sorenson-Groves, Vice-President of Government Affairs, where she explains the maze of budget action that is currently happening on Capitol Hill and how it relates to our National Wildlife Refuge System.