Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Fund

Many of North Americans’ favorite fish—rainbow trout, smelt, striped bass, bonefish,  scamp, Alabama cavefish, snapper, black grouper, yellow perch, blackspotted stickleback, flounder, monkfish, and gefilte, to name a few—will be at risk if the sequester budget cuts go into effect. National Wildlife Federation’s four million members love to fish. And fishing and hunting are on the rise: according to the 2011 national survey released by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, there has been a 9% increase in hunters and an 11% increased in anglers over the last five years.

Protect America’s fishing legacy!
Photo: Colorado Division of Wildlife

The WSFR exists thanks to two pieces of legislation: the 1937 Pittman Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act, which put an excise tax on sporting guns and ammunition in order to fund wildlife restoration, and the 1950 Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Act, which applied the same principle to fisheries restoration. Together, the two funds offer one of the most successful examples of the “user pay/user benefit” principle: the funds come entirely from a modest excise tax on fishing and hunting equipment, and are distributed to states by the US Fish and Wildlife Service to be used for conservation projects that enhance wildlife recreation and hunting and fishing opportunities.  Nevertheless, these funds already reserved for conservation will be subject to deep and catastrophic cuts under sequestration.

A Legacy of Conservation

The WSFR has had perhaps more impact than any other single conservation program. The flexible distribution of the funds means that states have considerable agency in deciding how best to use them, and WSFR has been used for an incredible variety of conservation programs. Over the past 75 years, it has helped restore countless wildlife populations and habitats, supported outdoor recreation and education program, and assisted states in acquiring delicate wetlands.

In 2012, the WSFR gave out about $720 million to states for conservation and restoration programs, funding that is crucial to the day-to-day operation of state fish and wildlife agencies.

Under sequestration, however, spending by the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Fund will be cut by a total of $65 million—funds that would otherwise go towards restoring critical wildlife habitats and fisheries.

What is more, the continued funding of sportsmen-valued programs like the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration program is incredibly important to our economy:  in 2011, over 37 million hunters and anglers spent $90 billion in recreational expenditures nationwide.  The recent sportsmen’s poll released by National Wildlife Federation showed that, regardless of political affiliation, America’s sportsmen are committed to conservation programs like WSFR.

At a time when climate change was almost completely absent from the presidential election , it is more important than ever to fight for the crucial conservation programs we rely on to protect wildlife for our children’s future. Click on the button to contact your Senators and Representatives today to let them know that sequestration will have a huge impact on the conservation programs you care about, and urge them to work towards a balanced approach to raise revenue, reduce the deficit, and prevent these cuts. 

A report released today by the Cooperative Alliance for Refuge Enhancement (CARE), a diverse coalition of sporting, conservation and scientific organizations representing 15 million Americans, warns that unless Congress abandons the automatic “sequestration” cuts scheduled to occur in January, the Refuge System could be forced to close refuges and eliminate popular recreational opportunities which many communities depend upon as economic drivers.

Evidence of sea level rise at Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge in Delaware. Photo taken in early spring of 2012 — before Hurricane Sandy. Credit: Bentley Johnson

1. Closed refuges and visitor centers;
2. Loss of hunting and fishing opportunities;
3. Volunteers turned away;
4. Lost revenue to local economies;
5. Increased poaching, vandalism and drug smuggling;
6. Lost opportunities for birding and wildlife watching;
7. Spread of invasive species;
8. Halted habitat restoration and fire management;
9. Delayed response to natural disaster devastation; and
10. Terminating a newly initiated inventory and monitoring program.

Already we are seeing wildlife refuges struggle to keep up with existing challenges, such as sea level rise and damage from extreme weather as a result of climate change (check out this story from the Washington Post on how Hurricane Sandy wreaked havoc on East Coast refuges). Any further cuts will leave refuge managers with hard decisions and no-win scenarios. Refuges aren’t alone: the conservation of wildlife and America’s public lands in general (including National Parks) is at risk.

Banking on Refuges

Wildlife refuges don’t just provide habitat for migratory birds or endangered species: they are drivers for our economy.

“The 560 national wildlife refuges that make up the 150-million-acre Refuge System generate more than $4.2 billion annually for local economies and create nearly 35,000 U.S. jobs annually.” says David Houghton, President of the National Wildlife Refuge Association and Chair of the CARE coalition.

Connecting People to Nature

Much of this economic activity is generated by the refuge system’s nearly 45 million visitors each year.  Activities like wildlife-watching, hunting, fishing, photography, hiking, canoeing, kayaking, and environmental education programs may be curtailed if America’s refuges go over the Fiscal Cliff.  As Larry Schweiger, National Wildlife Federation’s President & CEO, gave a sense of urgency to the sequestration situation after the CARE report was released:

“Wildlife refuges give Americans fantastic opportunities to get outside and connect with nature as well as providing critical habitat for wildlife, which is vital in a warming world. Continued investment in our refuges will also drive our recreation economy through activities like hunting and fishing. The CARE coalition’s Fiscal Cliff report details the potentially devastating consequences to America’s wildlife refuges if our elected leaders do not put aside differences and agree on a budget solution. It’s critical that we all work together to conserve and protect wildlife for future generations.”

You can make a difference to help prevent the budget crisis from devastating wildlife and our shared National Wildlife Refuge System by clicking on the link and sending a message to your elected official now.

To learn more about the sequestration process AND look at adorable wildlife photos at the same time, check out this blog post in which wildlife complain about the fiscal cliff budget cuts: http://bit.ly/T5qywI

Brought to you by National Wildlife Federation.

It’s time to talk about

Photo by Theodore Mattas

In the summer of 2011, the federal government very nearly defaulted on its loans.

Photo by Nathan Meadows

It was.  So the President and Congress reached a deal: Congress agreed to increase the debt ceiling  (and prevent the government from defaulting on their loans) in return for a guarantee that the federal deficit would be reduced. A bipartisan

Photo by NSF

made up of six members of the House and six of the Senate—with each delegation evenly split between Democrats and Republicans—was formed to figure out a plan.

But things didn’t work out quite as they hoped.

Photo by Mike Bender

Yeah, it gets worse. To make sure they reached a deal in time, the

Photo by NSF

put a failsafe in place: if Congress failed to enact a bill reducing the deficit by January 15, 2012, a series of automatic spending cuts—called “sequestration”—would begin in 2013.

Photo by Vishal Bhav

But Congress DID fail to reach a deal.

Photo by James Turner

 And now unless Congress acts before January 2, mandatory spending cuts will slash $109 billion from the next year’s budget and $1.2 trillion over the following nine years.  This will have a devastating impact on key conservation programs and the wildlife and ecosystems they protect.

Photo by Mary Ellen Carter

I know. It’s a mess.

What’s worse, these cuts will have a disproportionate impact on conservation programs cherished by all those who enjoy access to our rich natural resources.

Many of these programs are already

Photo by Scott Landseidel

Like the EPA’s Environmental Programs and Management funding—crucial to Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act protection programs—which would be cut by $220 million.

And the State and Tribal Wildlife Grants program, which provides crucial funding for preventing wildlife from becoming endangered, and which could be cut by about $5 million, leaving only $56 million to protect wildlife like:

Photo by Bala K. Srivinas

Photo by Gregory J. Fisher

Photo by USFWS

in all 50 states.

Funds that are supposed to be dedicated to restoring land, water, and wildlife resources—like the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which stands to be cut by about $20 million, and the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Fund, which would be cut by $65 million—will be 

Photo by Christine Haines

with everything else that’s being cut, endangering the conservation of critical wildlife habitats.

Tax breaks for oil aren’t affected, yet millions of dollars that protect clean air and water, wildlife conservation, alternative energy subsidies, and environmental remediation programs will be slashed.

Photo by Corel

I wish I was, believe me.

What is particularly awful about the sequestration cuts is that federal departments and agencies have no discretion about where to make the cuts: non-defense discretionary spending—which encompasses virtually all environmental programs—is subject to a cut of 8.2% at the program level.

Photo by Christopher Willis

OK, so the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, say, has a whole array of programs they fund, like the Multinational Species Conservation Fund and the North American Wetlands Conservation Fund. In this case, they can’t decide to keep the Multinational Species Conservation Fund intact and cut the North American Wetlands Conservation Fund by 16.4%; every program must be cut by 8.2%.

Photo by Dave Menke/USFWS

Basically,

Photo by Adam Davis

A TON.

Photo by Neil McCulloch

Not so fast!

Tell Congress to:

Photo by Adam Davis

on partisan bickering, and to

Photo by Howard Sheridan

Photo by Joe Robertson

To come up with a balanced approach to raise revenue and reduce wasteful spending to save the programs American wildlife (and people) count on to ensure clean air and water and habitats.

Because

Photo by Brett Klaproth

Do you really want to sequester that face?

Protect ocelots and more endangered wildlife by telling your members of Congress to preserve funding for vital conservation programs.

Action alert updated 11/20/12.

Iconic waters, like the Chesapeake Bay and the Everglades, provide jobs, food, drinking water, transportation, power, recreation and wildlife habitat. They also provide a sense of regional and national identity for many Americans. Members of the Great Waters Coalition traveled from all over the country to reach out to lawmakers on Capitol Hill.  Water advocates spoke out about how extreme budget cuts to restoration funding and harmful policy riders are placing vital water resources at risk, as well as the people and wildlife that depend on them. Great Waters Coalition members also met with water champions, like Great Lakes lawmaker Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), who are also committed to protecting our precious national resources.  

Sen. Stabenow & Great Waters Coalition

“We need to hold government accountable to reduce our debt, but abandoning clean water protection and putting thousands of jobs in jeopardy is shortsighted and wrong,” Sen. Stabenow said. 

 “America’s Great Waters are essential to our nation’s growth and prosperity, providing not only drinking water but valuable jobs to millions of Americans,” said Malia Hale, co-chair for the America’s Great Waters Coalition and director for national restoration and water resources at the National Wildlife Federation.  “For example, a recent study by the Brookings Institution found that restoring the Great Lakes will bring the eight-state region at least $2 in economic benefits for every $1 of federal investment.”  

 More than 75 local, regional and national organizations speak with a united voice as part of America’s Great Waters Coalition. Click here to find out more about the coalition partners and the important work that they do.