Military Construction, The Department of Veterans Affairs, And Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2016--Motion to Proceed

Floor Speech

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Mr. DAINES. Mr. President, Montana's national forests and public lands have been a pleasure and a part of our State's heritage for generations.

As a fifth-generation Montanan and as someone who loves the outdoors, I recognize how valuable our public lands are and the importance of ensuring access for generations to come to hunting, backpacking and fishing--traditions that I, like many Montanans, have been thankful to pass along to my kids. I know firsthand the important role that the Land and Water Conservation Fund holds in protecting and increasing Montanans' access to our public lands.

That is why since coming to Congress I have been actively working to secure funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund every year. In fact, through the appropriations process this summer, Senator Susan Collins and I successfully passed an amendment to increase the funding for the LWCF program by nearly $14 million. This brought the overall funding for LWCF to $306 million and ensured that LWCF did not lose out on work for permanent authorization.

In Montana and throughout the country, the Land and Water Conservation Fund plays a critical role in achieving the goal of increased access. Despite the tireless efforts and the work of Senators BURR, COLLINS, AYOTTE, ALEXANDER, and GARDNER to move reauthorization forward, yet again today, the authorization for LWCF will expire tonight. The Continuing Resolution did not include a reauthorization for LWCF.

Because LWCF is funded through royalties generated from offshore energy development, it is a fundamental tool to help preserve and protect Montanans' opportunity to enjoy hunting, fishing, and outdoor recreation. In fact, during the August recess while I was back home in Montana, this is where I was: On the public lands of Montana. This is the Beartooth Wilderness area. This is my wife Cindy and our dog Ruby. I have my fly rod on my back. This is, in fact, up near Granite Peak, Montana's highest peak. That is over 10,000 feet where that picture was taken. It was a chance to enjoy our public lands--something that is an absolute treasure for the people of Montana and the people of our great country.

LWCF keeps family ranches in the family and working. It is a fundamental tool that preserves and protects our opportunities to enjoy hunting, fishing, and outdoor recreation. It keeps forests in productive use through the Forest Legacy Program, as in the Haskill Basin where my good friend Chuck Roady of Stoltz Land and Lumber works.

That is why it is so disappointing that reauthorization was not included in the CR we voted on today.

Under the current CR, LWCF will be funded, as will the rest of the Federal Government, through December 11. LWCF will be funded at fiscal year 2015 levels and all projects will continue as planned. However, any new deposits into the fund will stop tomorrow, on October 1.

I have heard from many Montana businesses, outfitters, and guides who love the outdoors and are very concerned about the program's lapse in authorization. These small businesses rely on it for public access to Montana's treasured public lands for outdoor recreation which supports millions of dollars of revenue and hundreds of jobs for our State.

Like Eric Grove of Great Divide Cyclery in Helena who has built his mountain bike business around the South Hills Trail System outside of Helena which was facilitated by LWCF. There are many other small businesses such as Eric's in Montana.

Before being elected to the Senate, before coming to Congress, I spent more than 12 years growing a technology company in Bozeman. We were able to attract quality employees not only because we offered good-paying salaries, but also because of Montana's unparalleled quality of life. In fact, our slogan was ``work where you also like to play.'' The LWCF is a critical tool that facilitates recreation on our public lands, allowing Montana businesses to attract world class employees. We can't let it slip away.

I remind the Members of the Senate, we passed the reauthorization of LWCF. We have that in the bipartisan energy bill that passed the Energy and Natural Resources Committee this year. I hope for cooperation from our friends across the aisle to bring that to the floor for a vote and move it forward in regular order, which is the way the Senate should operate.

Now I wish to pause and yield to my distinguished colleague from the great State of New Hampshire, Senator Kelly Ayotte, who is also a big supporter of LWCF. I am glad she has come to the floor today and is joining me in our fight to make sure we keep LWCF reauthorized.

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Mr. DAINES. Mr. President, I wish to thank Senator Ayotte for her great comments and for speaking as well about her heritage that has been passed down in New Hampshire.

In this picture, this is not a selfie that was taken with a selfie stick. The reason we happened to have this picture is that we had our son along. Our son took that picture of my wife Cindy, our dog Ruby, and me.

These are lands that I hiked in when I was a little boy, when my parents introduced me to the public lands of Montana wilderness areas. Outdoor heritage is an important part of who we are as Americans, as is the importance of preserving and protecting our clean water and our clean air.

I know our States' Governors don't want this program to lapse either. In fact, in a letter sent yesterday from the National Governors Association, they stated that a lapse in authorization would create uncertainties for our States.

We can still do the right thing. We can still reauthorize this important program.

There was an appropriations bill that was passed which gave us funding at the same level we had from last year, at $306 million. It is short of where I would like to have it, and I know it is short of where Senator Ayotte would like to see it funded, but at least we held our funding consistent with where we were at last year.

The energy committee, through the Energy Modernization Act, had the reauthorization provisions in it. That would permanently reauthorize the program.

So there are a lot of options on the table to get this done. We can still do the right thing. We need to double down our efforts and reauthorize this most important program. I am a proud cosponsor of the multiple-piece legislation to make the LWCF permanent and the fight to reauthorize this program. In fact, I am the only Republican member on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee to cosponsor S. 338, Senator Burr's legislation, that will secure a permanent solution for LWCF.

Permanent reauthorization of LWCF is also included in the Senate Energy Policy Modernization Act that we just talked about. It passed the committee on a large bipartisan vote. In the coming days I think the momentum behind reauthorization is only going to grow stronger. We have that evidenced here today as I am joined by a number of my colleagues who support the LWCF, and we are not going to let this conversation die. We are going to continue to fight for the permanent reauthorization of LWCF. It is a tool for public access. It is a tool to ensure that Montanans and the American people can have access to the public lands.

I am hopeful the momentum will lead the House to prioritize reauthorization in the near future. It is vital that we permanently reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund and not allow reauthorization to lapse. We need to get this reauthorization passed and on the President's desk.

I see that another supporter of LWCF, the Senator from Tennessee, Mr. Lamar Alexander, has joined us in this colloquy. I am glad to have Senator Alexander here and look forward to his comments on LWCF.

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Mr. DAINES. I want to thank the Senator from Tennessee for his leadership and unwavering commitment to the LWCF through the many years.

We are also joined by the Senator from Maine, Ms. Collins. Senator Collins comes from the beautiful State of Maine and shares a passion for the outdoors. I am grateful to have Senator Collins speak on behalf of the LWCF.

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Mr. DAINES. I thank the Senator from Maine for those great remarks.

It is important to get our young people outside--outdoors. In fact, this picture was taken about 5 weeks ago by my son with his smartphone. The good news is that the smartphone wasn't working because it was so far away from cell phone towers, but the camera did work, so he took the picture.

It is important to get out and pass it on to the next generation to get our children out on the public lands. The LWCF has an important role in ensuring that access and preserving it for generations to come.

We heard from the Senator from New Hampshire, Ms. Ayotte; from the Senator from Tennessee, Mr. Alexander; and the Senator from Maine, Ms. Collins. I spoke from Montana. You can see the geographic diversity across our entire country to support this program.

It is only fitting that the Senator from North Carolina is here now, Mr. Burr. He has been the leader in permanent reauthorization for LWCF. That is why both Senator Collins and I are proud cosponsors of S. 338, which would permanently reauthorize the LWCF. I thank the Senator from North Carolina, Mr. Burr, for his leadership and what he is doing to remove this uncertainty we have today in the LWCF and get it permanently reauthorized.

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Mr. DAINES. I want to thank the Senator from North Carolina, Mr. Burr. I thank you for your leadership on the LWCF. Senator Burr has been truly out in front, working first to get the temporary reauthorization here as a bridge until we get the permanent reauthorization. I appreciate the comments. See, this is not about a land grab. This is about a land solution, as Senator Burr said. It allows us, in many cases, to provide access to public lands that we currently do not have access to because they might be landlocked through private holdings.

So thank you, Senator Burr. In conclusion, I am hopeful that the momentum that we are seeing here in the Senate will lead the House to prioritize the LWCF reauthorization in the near future. It is vital that we permanently reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund and do not allow authorization to lapse. We have less than 11 hours and this program will lapse. We need to get reauthorization passed, and get it on the President's desk, and get this signed.

I yield the floor.

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