Bill would increase funding to address maintenance backlog at national parks
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper recently joined Senators Angus King and Steve Daines to introduce the bipartisan America the Beautiful Act, which would reauthorize the National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund (LRF) and increase its funding to address the serious maintenance backlog in our national parks and public lands.
“Our public lands are our national treasures. We’re making sure they’re treated that way,” said Hickenlooper. “Our bill fills a critical gap in funding so Americans can enjoy our sacred outdoor spaces for generations to come.”
The LRF was originally passed in the 2020 Great American Outdoors Act, but now requires reauthorization.
This bill reauthorizes the LRF through 2033 and increases funding to $2 billion per year to help address the maintenance backlog in national parks and public lands. Currently, the maintenance backlog for each agency includes:
- U.S. Park Service: $23.26 billion
- U.S. Forest Service: $8.695 billion
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: $2.65 billion
- U.S. Bureau of Land Management: $5.72 billion
- U.S. Bureau of Indian Education: $804.5 million
Hickenlooper sits on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee where he is an advocate for Colorado public lands. He recently introduced the Protect Our Parks Act of 2025 and the Save Our Forests Act of 2025 to restore National Park Service (NPS) and U.S. Forest Service (USFS) workers who were illegally fired by the Trump administration. He also took to the Senate floor and led an amendment to the Republican budget plan to protect public lands from being sold to pay for tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy.
Full text of the bill is available HERE.
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