Office of the Secretary������� ������� ������� ������� ������� ������� ���������������Contact: John Wright

For Immediate Release: Feb. 1, 2002������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 202-208-6416������

Secretary Norton Announces $140 Million For State

Recreation Grants From LWCF

WASHINGTON - Marking her one-year anniversary in office, Interior Secretary Gale Norton today held a telephone conference with Western governors, and announced funding grants of $140 million from the Land and Water Conservation Fund.�� The LWCF grants provide assistance to the 50 states, the territories and the District of Columbia for enhancing parks and other recreational opportunities.�

�These grants are the largest amount distributed directly to the states in two decades,� Norton said.� �This funding level will help fulfill the president�s commitment to fostering and investing in state and local recreational projects so that all Americans will have access to close-to-home parks and open spaces.�

The fiscal year 2002 apportionment from the LWCF represents a 57 percent increase over FY 2001 funding levels for state grants to assist in promoting conservation and improving outdoor recreational facilities at the state and local level.

Since the inception of the fund in 1965, more than $3.2 billion dollars have been made available to state and local governments to invest in and improve approximately 38,000 outdoor and recreational projects.� States and local municipalities have matched this amount, thereby doubling the investment to a total of $6.4 billion.� Of the total number of projects, approximately 10,000 have helped states and local communities to acquire more than 2.3 million acres of park land.�

Enacted by Congress in 1964, the LWCF was established to create and maintain a nationwide system of high-quality recreation areas and facilities.� The LWCF state grant program, administered by the NPS, provides grants on a 50/50 matching basis to states, and through states to local units of government, for the acquisition and development of public outdoor recreation areas and facilities.� These LWCF state grants help state and local governments acquire, develop, improve and maintain high-quality outdoor recreation areas and open space, ensuring that the recreation opportunities provided will be available for all Americans to enjoy in perpetuity.

The major share of the LWCF is derived from revenues produced by Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas leasing.� Over the past 20 years, funding for state grants averaged less than $32 million per year. Congress did not appropriate funds at all for state grants from 1996 through 1999.�

Under the LWCF Act, states are responsible for analyzing their own recreation needs by setting priorities for funding, supervising and coordinating selection of projects, supervising project work and ensuring compliance with federal regulations and guidelines that affect the grants program.� States submit project proposals to NPS field offices, which give final approval to grants and oversee project implementation and compliance activities.

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Editor�s Note:� Attached is a state-by-state breakdown of the 2002 LWCF grants.