House FY 20 LWCF Stateside.. When 40% isn’t 40%..
NASORLO Members:
One of the key issues in our ” success ” in the re-authorizing of LWCF was restoring equity, or a 40% of the annual LWCF appropriations for state grants. However, Congress, in the appropriation process, always has the authority to “interpret” what 40% means, ignore it or change it. That is one of the primary reasons NASORLO was organized in the first place…to be state advocates for this program, pay attention to the appropriation process and hold Congress, the Administration and the federal agency to their commitment to the state programs and abide by the contents of the law. In the recently passed House appropriations, we did not get a 40% share.. 37%, close but not consistent with the law. Here is what happened in the current allocations in the House. ( By the way, there was no $$ for state grants under LWCF in the Administration budget )
The total LWCF in the House Bill is $ 524 million. 40% of that total would be $ 296 for State grants…but their bill only includes $ 226 million for state grants! Why?? We’re did the $$ go and why should you expect only a small increase in your LWCF for FY 20?
A. Congress decided to include projected GOMESA amount in their calculations of the 40%… which we knew about, but hoped they would not do. Therefore, instead of receiving 40% of the regular ( they call it discretionary funding of $ 524 million ), we would receive 40% of the total LWCF, including GOMESA.
B. The FY 20 Budget for LWCF estimates GOMESA at $ 113,122,000. However, the NPS more realistic estimate of GOMESA is $ 86 million.. a loss of $27,112,000 from the proposed state grants in the House budget!!
C. The new law includes an equitable share for all states and territories in the first 40% which also impacts the distribution ( although it is still not clear if this change will be in the FY 20 or FY 21 fund distribution formula).
The reality is this;
In FY 19 ( the current year ) your allocation for state grants were based on this…. $ 110 from formula grants, $ 20 million ORLP, and a bit over $ 4 million for NPS Administration and an estimated $ 61 million from GOMESA. Total..$ 185 million.
Based on the approved House version for FY 20 ( which will be likely changed somewhat in the Senate ) the state program will likely be $ 226 million, an increase of $ 41 million dollars. This is $ 110 million for the formula grants, $ 25 million for GOMESA, $ 5 million for NPS Administration and an estimated $ 86 million from GOMESA. This amount of LWCF for states totals about 37%. ( So 40% isn’t always, 40%.. at least in the House Budget for FY 20 ).
We will try to raise this issue in the Senate.. but it is not a given that we will prevail. One option…If the Senate cuts federal LA and does not touch LWCF, then 40% might be possible.
