In celebration of Great Outdoors Month, I'm reaching out to share some wonderful progress that has been made at our national parks, as well as the ongoing maintenance and repair challenges our parks face.
Nearly four years ago, Congress came together with huge bipartisan support to prioritize our national parks with the passage of the bipartisan Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA). The GAOA established the Legacy Restoration Fund and this dedicated funding is conserving parks and other public lands across the country and addressing hundreds of overdue maintenance projects in national parks. It is greatly improving visitor experiences for the millions of people, including constituents like me, who travel to these treasured places every year. The successes of the Legacy Restoration Fund, are far-reaching, stretching from Acadia to Glacier Bay, and covering a wide range of projects from crumbling roads and trails to aging campgrounds and visitor centers. And it's clear that local communities across the country have and will continue to see the benefits of investing in our national parks. You can see what projects here.
Through 2025, GAOA will continue to address critical repair projects and improve visitor experiences in our parks. But after decades of inadequate investments, much of the infrastructure is now over 50 years old and more funding is needed to continue the work. Parks are more popular than ever before, but infrastructure needs continue to impact visitor access and safety and threaten park resources.
I call on you as my member of Congress to do everything you can to extend the maintenance fund in this important law by providing at least five more years of funding to fix our parks and keep this successful effort going. I believe that national parks can continue to unify our nation and Congress.
Thank you for considering my views.