Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chair Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) sponsored S. 47, the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act, a package of public lands bills that permanently reauthorized the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and protected over two million acres of public lands and waters, among other provisions. LWCF is the nation’s best and most accessible parks program and has benefitted every region and nearly every county in the country by funding a wide scope of projects that range from increasing access to national parks to creating local parks. In addition to the LWCF provisions, S. 47 included more than 100 local and regional land protection bills, as well as the Every Kid Outdoors Act, which provides free access to our nation’s public lands and waters for fourth graders and their families. While not every provision in the package benefitted conservation, overall, this legislation advanced public lands and waters protections. On February 26, the House approved S. 47 by a vote of 363-62 (House roll call vote 95). YES IS THE PRO-ENVIRONMENT VOTE. The Senate approved S. 47 on February 12 and the president signed this legislation into law on March 12.