President Donald Trump’s official budget request for fiscal year (FS) 2026 defunds most conservation funding including unprecedented cuts to the National Park Service (NPS) and reductions in federal programs which connect our children and communities to the outdoors.
The May 2, 2025 Trump Office of Management and Budget letter calls for $387 million diverted from the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) which is used to buy forests, wetlands, prairies, mountains, and other native landscapes. The funds for the LWCF come from offshore oil/gas leases and mitigate some of the damage that oil/gas exploitation causes. Some of the environmental programs and public lands that are proposed for defunding include:
Department of the Interior $900 million from the NPS Operation of the National Park System; $158 million from the NPS Historic Preservation Fund; $73 million from NPS Construction; $77 million from NPS National Recreation and Preservation; $564 million from the US Geological Survey’s Surveys, Investigations, and Research; $198 million from Bureau of Land Management’s Conservation Programs; $170 million from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (USFWS) State, Tribal, and NGO Conservation Grant Programs; $37 million from the USFWS Ecological Servies; and eliminate the $80 million DOI Renewable Energy Program.
Department of Agriculture $754 million from the Natural Resource Conservation Service Private Lands Conservation Operations; $721 million from Rural Development Programs; $392 million from the National Forest System Management; $391 million from Forest Service Operations; $303 million from State, Local, Tribal, and NGO Conservation Programs; $300 million from Forest and Rangeland Research; and eliminate the $16 million NRCS Watershed Operations (dams) program.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) $2.46 billion from Clean and Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Funds; $1.006 billion from Categorical Grants; $254 million from Hazardous Substance Superfund; eliminate $235 million Office of Research and Development; eliminate the $100 million Environmental Justice program; eliminate the $90 million Diesel Emissions Reduction Act Grants program; and eliminate the $100 million Atmospheric Protection Program.
Department of Energy (DOE) $15.247 billion IIJA renewable energy, carbon dioxide removal, and electric vehicle programs; $2.572 billion from Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy program; $1.148 billion Office of Science; and $389 million from Environmental Management program (clean-up sites).
Various agencies $1.311 billion from NOAA Operations, Research, and Grants; $209 million from NOAA Procurement of Weather Satellites and Infrastructure program; remove $296 million from the HUD Surplus Lead Hazard Reduction and Healthy Homes Funding; $1.161 billion form NASA Earth Science; eliminate $275 million Department of State Contribution to the Global Environmental Facility and Climate Investment Funds International Program; and eliminate the Great Lakes Authority.
Trump has proposed selling off public lands and begun this process by signing executive orders and laying off thousands of people who protect and manage them. Our public lands provide clean air, water, wildlife/habitats, endangered species, water quantity, recreational benefits, climate stability, grazing, mineral/energy use, hunting, fishing, hiking, kayaking/canoeing/boating, photography, beautiful landscapes, community stability, ecotourism, and ecosystem services for people and all living beings.
You will have to pay exorbitant prices to enjoy beautiful landscapes or do without. Federal urban parks and seashores like Padre Island, Fire Island, The Presidio, and others will be gone, sold as high-income development with limited or no public access. There will be no long-term protection!
You can stop this right now! Now is the time to contact your U.S. Senators and U.S. Representative and say, “No More!”, “No Mas!”, to the defunding and sell-off of our public lands. Contact Texas U.S. Senators John Cornyn and Ted Cruz and your U.S. Representative now!!!
1. Reach Senator Cornyn at: https://www.cornyn.senate.gov, then press the “Contact” button to send an email message, or write directly to: Senator John Cornyn, 5300 Memorial Dr., Suite 710, Houston, Texas 77007.
2. Reach Senator Ted Cruz at: https://www.cruz.senate.gov, then press the “Contact” button to send an email message, or write directly to: Senator Ted Cruz, 1919 Smith St., Suite 9047, Houston, Texas 77002.
3. Reach your U.S. Representative by putting, “My U.S. Representative” in your search engine, find your representative and then send an email message or write directly.
Don’t wait! Send your response now! The “Public” must stand-up and tell our elected U.S. Representatives and Senators that our public lands must be funded and aren’t for sale. They belong to us! Your public lands now and in the future, provide you with great benefits that must be protected now!