Washington D.C. — In response to the House Natural Resources Committee mark-up of its portion of the Build Back Better Act, the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) released the following statement from Conservation Program Director Alex Taurel: 

“As communities across the country are traumatized by the horrifying impacts of climate-fueled extreme weather, it has never been more critical that Congress pass a historic investment in climate, clean energy, justice, and jobs at the scale that science demands. We’re thrilled that Chair Grijalva and committee Democrats are advancing their portion of the Build Back Better Act by making robust investments that will strengthen our economy and create jobs by leveraging our public lands and waters into assets in the climate fight and making access to nature more equitable. These crucial investments will restore our public lands and coasts, encourage clean energy, prohibit big polluters from plundering our public lands and waters, and make sure oil, gas and mining companies pay their fair share. We urge Congress to retain these and other essential investments in the House Natural Resources Committee’s bill as the Build Back Better Act is assembled and finalized.”

LCV’s priorities in the HNRC bill include:

• Funding to restore protections for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
• Funding for urban parks and the Every Kid Outdoors program.
• The numerous provisions that raise revenues by making oil, gas and mining companies pay their fair share to extract resources on our public lands and waters. 
• Protecting coastal economies by establishing a permanent ban on offshore drilling in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico and off the Pacific and Atlantic coasts. 
• Creating jobs by undoing Trump’s ban on offshore wind power off the southeast coast.
• Strengthening rural economies and preserving treasured and sacred places by protecting public lands like Oak Flat (AZ), the Thompson Divide (CO), and the areas around the Grand Canyon. 
• Funding a Civilian Climate Corps.
• Investing in coastal restoration projects.

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