[CINC] Fwd: Making sense of the national parks budget fight

[Catherine French]

Info about national park budget battles.



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Catherine French
Writer, mentor, naturalist
805.570.0432
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-----Original Message-----
From: Tom Kiernan, NPCA <takeaction at npca.org>
To: cfrench1366 <cfrench1366 at aol.com>
Sent: Wed, Sep 21, 2011 10:23 am
Subject: Making sense of the national parks budget fight








 







Click here to learn more about NPCA’s campaign against cuts to our national parks budget.


Dear Catherine,

Now that Congress is back in session, we have a clearer picture of what recent events mean for the national parks budget, though times are very unusual and much remains to be seen.

2012 Budget Proposal Might Improve

Though the next fiscal year, 2012, begins on October 1, the national parks budget still remains to be seen.

The good news is that the Senate spending bill that covers national parks has a larger pie to divide than the House did--almost $2 billion higher--so NPCA is working to ensure that our national parks get some of that additional funding and receive a higher level than was proposed in the House back in July.

Damaging Policy Riders Are Still a Threat

The terrible add-ons we’ve been warning you about--like authorizing more uranium mining near the Grand Canyon--could still come up at any point in the process.

Additionally, because Congress is unlikely to pass an actual 2012 budget before the September 30 deadline, we expect them to keep the government--and our national parks--open by passing at least one continuing resolution this month, and possibly more temporary measures later this fall.

NPCA will continue to monitor the situation and we’ll let you know if we need your help to defend the parks budget once again.

Congressional Super Committee to Make Decisions Vitally Important to Our National Parks

Finally, the August debt deal already made cuts to discretionary budgets to take place over the next decade, and it is unclear how this may affect parks. On top of this, as you may have heard, the debt ceiling deal also created a special bipartisan congressional committee charged with identifying, before Thanksgiving, at least $1.2 trillion in additional budget cuts to take place over the next 10 years.

NPCA is already hard at work to make sure this process doesn't result in drastic cuts to our national parks. We know that our parks are big economic engines in gateway communities and that by protecting our national treasures, they also serve a vital economic purpose.

Gutting our national parks is not the way to balance our budget. They cost us very little yet protect our national treasures for future generations and support hundreds of thousands of private-sector jobs.

If the “super committee” can’t reach a deal on how to reduce the annual budget deficit, it will force automatic and drastic cuts to the national parks. This is really a doomsday scenario for our national parks. The automatic cuts would translate to a roughly 9% cut for programs, including the National Park Service.

No one wants to see that happen, so NPCA will keep the pressure on and make sure that Congress knows there are tens of thousands of Americans just like you who don’t want to see any further cuts to our national parks budget.

Find Out More

This is just an overview of where we stand in keeping our national parks adequately funded for today and for future generations. If you’re interested in getting down to the real nitty-gritty, there are many great resources on the NPCA website.

Click here to learn more about NPCA’s all-hands-on-deck campaign against cuts to our national parks budget.
Thank you so much for standing with us in these budget campaigns. We could not defend our national parks without you.
Sincerely,

Thomas C. Kiernan
President
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This message was sent to  cfrench1366 at aol.com by the National Parks Conservation Association.
 
E-mail us at TakeAction at npca.org, write to us at 777 6th Street, NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20001, or call us at 800.NAT.PARK (800.628.7275). 

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NPCA | 777 6th Street, NW | Suite 700 | Washington, DC 20001 | 800.NAT.PARK | npca at npca.org



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