Position on House Natural Resources Reconciliation Amendments

Leger Fernandez #2: NPCA supports this amendment, which would keep royalty rates at their current levels and thereby ensure oil and gas companies pay their fair share. Lowering the royalty rates takes money away from states that they use for education, health and safety programs and the federal government to help manage western waters, contribute to conservation programs including the Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund, and fund the U.S. Treasury.

Soto #13: NPCA supports this amendment, which would redirect funds to coral reef conservation efforts. Coral reef tracts and ecosystems have seen an accelerated decline due to disease, pollution, harmful algal blooms and coral bleaching events decimating marine ecosystems and our coastal national parks. These funds will help protect our coastal communities from severe storms and flooding, while benefiting the economies that rely on a healthy reef tract and abundant fisheries.

Huffman #34: NPCA supports this amendment, which would strike the provision that rescinds the 20-year mineral withdrawal and reinstates the leases allowing mining within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and its surrounding watershed, which includes Voyageurs National Park. Voyageurs’ waterways offer world-class fishing and recreational opportunities to thousands of visitors that pump over $20 million into local economies. Pollution from as far as 100 miles away could flow downstream into the national park waters, threatening public health, wildlife and the local economy.

Huffman #35: NPCA supports this amendment, which states the provision that rescinds the 20-year mineral withdrawal and reinstates the leases allowing mining within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness cannot move forward until agencies certify that there will be no degradation of water quality in Boundary Waters and Voyageurs National Park. Pollution in these waters threatens world-class fishing and recreational opportunities.

Leger Fernandez #60: NPCA supports this amendment, which requires agencies to ensure no mining project can proceed in a national park unless the Department of the Interior (DOI) and the Government Accountability Office certify that it is not being led by a foreign company with connections to foreign entities of concern. While current law may technically allow mining in limited cases, it has no place in our national parks in the 21st century. It is unacceptable for foreign companies to exploit outdated loopholes and threaten the integrity of these protected landscapes. The recent actions around the Colosseum Mine in Mojave National Preserve highlight how foreign-backed firms can manipulate old approvals to profit from public lands that should be off-limits.

Neguse #68: NPCA supports this amendment, which prevents funding from being used to cancel leases or close federal facilities including in the National Park Service (NPS). The Trump Administration is terminating leases and shuttering offices across the country that function as visitor services, law enforcement offices, museums and hubs for critical park services in our national parks. These facilities house vital staff including scientists, educators, archeologists, superintendents and others who carry out the basic operations and mission of national parks.

Dingell #75: NPCA supports this amendment, which would remove provisions which block the opportunity for courts to undertake judicial review, an important process for determining the legality of federal decisions. Nullifying judicial review eliminates the checks and balances between the executive and judicial branches. Ensuring that judicial review remains helps guarantee fair consideration of the current laws that protect park resources.

Dingell #76: NPCA supports this amendment, which would strike provisions that undermine the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The ESA has been a critically important tool in the conservation and restoration of the over 600 threatened and endangered species that depend on habitats in national parks. Species like the California condor, the humpback whale, and the Santa Rosa Island fox have all benefited from the restoration and recovery framework and support the ESA provides.

Dingell #79: NPCA supports this amendment, which would protect access to public lands, including units of the National Park System. In 2024 a record 332 million visitors went to a national park, up 2% from the previous year. In 2023 visitors spent an estimated $26.4 billion in gateway communities across the country and parks contributed $55.6 billion in economic output to the national economy.

Dingell #82: NPCA supports this amendment, which would prohibit recissions of funds for critical work to protect Great Lakes fisheries, address harmful algal blooms, and advance resilience across the region. These investments are critical to restoring the waters, enhancing recreation, and protecting the unique landscapes within 10 national parks along their shorelines.

Hoyle #91: NPCA supports this amendment, which redirects the DOI Office of Inspector General for oversight and accountability over firings, forced separations and other reductions in force. Since January, NPS staff have been reduced by nearly 13%. Just as visitors are coming to the parks this spring and summer, parks are forced to prioritize visitor services over resource protection and research. The loss of these staff will have long-lasting impacts on our national treasures if these cuts are not reversed and halted.

Dingell #117: NPCA supports this amendment, which prohibits funds from being used to reduce protections for Great Lakes marine sanctuaries. Great Lakes Sanctuaries serve a critical role in protecting sensitive marine environments, preserving maritime history, and working collaboratively with the region’s 10 shoreline national parks to restore the Great Lakes and enhance opportunities for recreation and tourism.

Brownley #128: NPCA supports this amendment, which prohibits funds from being used to reduce protections for National Marine Sanctuaries in the Pacific. Conserving America’s most valuable underwater treasures in the Pacific through the National Marine Sanctuary System preserves biodiversity, protects endangered marine wildlife, provides recreational and economic opportunities, and strengthens the deep connections between our communities and maritime heritage.

Neguse #138: NPCA supports this amendment, which would prohibit funding being used to reduce or eliminate the nationally significant lands and waters that have been set aside for permanent protection as national monuments. Presidents of both major political parties have used the Antiquities Act to establish national monuments since 1906, with these special places providing protected habitat for countless species, recreation opportunities for millions of Americans, and an economic driver for the local community.

Neguse #139: NPCA supports this amendment, which would protect funds dedicated to helping parks prepare for the future. Up to 2,500 dedicated rangers, scientists and managers have already been forced out, leaving national parks more understaffed than ever before. The National Parks also must prepare for record fires, floods and storms. This amendment prevents the resolution from taking away critical funds that help NPS fill critical gaps in its workforce and undertake projects that prepare parks and park infrastructure across the National Park System.

Stansbury #150: NPCA supports this amendment, which would direct the Inspectors General at agencies, including NPS, to investigate and report to Congress the impacts of the DOGE cuts on agency staffing, services, funding and data. Our national parks are being systematically dismantled through the hiring freeze, forced resignations, canceled leases and more. National parks are critical to the economy of every state, supporting gateway small businesses and providing local employment.

Randall #172: NPCA supports this amendment to ensure provisions don’t increase deferred maintenance in our public lands and reauthorizes the Great American Outdoors Act National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund that is set to sunset this year. Extending maintenance funding for our national parks is fundamental if we want our national treasures to continue to exist for the next generation to experience.

Stansbury #176: NPCA supports this amendment, which protects funds dedicated to helping parks prepare for the future. Up to 2,500 dedicated rangers, scientists and managers have already been forced out leaving national parks more understaffed than ever before. The National Parks also must prepare for record fires, floods and storms. This amendment prevents the resolution from taking away critical funds that help NPS fill critical gaps in its workforce and undertake projects that prepare parks and park infrastructure across the National Park System.

Ansari #191: NPCA supports this amendment, which would prohibit transferring management of public lands on the border. Six national parks are located along the U.S.-Mexico border. A memorandum of understanding already exists between the Department of Homeland Security and DOI which prioritizes national security and enforcement activities. Transferring these lands out of public hands is unnecessary and would likely undermine the public’s ability to experience these places.

Dexter/Huffman #197: NPCA supports this amendment, which would require the federal government to complete tribal consultation before approving permits for the Ambler industrial mining road in Northwest Alaska. Ninety Tribes, First Nations, and Communities have opposed efforts to force permitting for the Ambler road, which would cut through Gates of the Arctic National Preserve and have devastating impacts to Alaska Native communities and subsistence food resources, including caribou, sheefish, and salmon.

Elfreth #209: NPCA supports this amendment to restore the funding and staffing for AmeriCorps and Conservation Corps. For decades, AmeriCorps members have responded to our country’s most immediate and critical needs, including helping to restore our national parks by addressing deferred maintenance projects.

Magaziner #213: NPCA supports this amendment, which strikes rescission to critical National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) programs providing funds for coastal communities to enhance their resilience to extreme storms and addressing the long-term infrastructure backlog at marine sanctuaries. The amendment would ensure that funds remain available for coastal communities and advance the protection of national park coastal and marine resources.

Brownley #216: NPCA supports this amendment which would prohibit funds from being used to execute or enforce execute orders on hiring and Reductions-In-Force. Between 2010 and 2023, staffing to operate our national parks eroded by 20% and an additional 2,500 dedicated staff have been forced out since January. Lost positions include wastewater treatment operators, fee collectors, emergency responders, custodial staff, interpreters and more. These cuts will have devastating impacts on the natural and cultural resources these parks protect.

Huffman #247: NPCA supports this amendment, which would protect how the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is implemented. For more than 50 years, NEPA has protected America’s public lands and national parks. This crucial law gives people a voice in how their public lands are used, ensuring that impacts to our air, water and wildlife are properly considered before development projects move forward.

Neguse #253: NPCA supports this amendment, which would prohibit revenue from this legislation from being used to sell off public lands. National parks don’t exist in isolation, and the natural resources and wildlife know no boundaries. Dividing up public lands for development is bad for ecosystems, habitat connectivity, air quality, watershed management and regional planning.