skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, March 29, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina's congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Mayorkas.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Veterans Join Push to Renew Land and Water Conservation Fund

play audio
Play

Wednesday, July 25, 2018   

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Thousands of veterans are calling on Congress to reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund before it expires in September. They want to save a program that has been used to protect millions of acres of public lands and build countless parks and ball fields over the past 50 years.

The Vet Voice Foundation released a new report showing the benefits of keeping the LWCF going. Retired Army Col. Arnold V. Strong, a Californian who served in Afghanistan and Iraq, said America's wide-open spaces are a big part of what he fought for.

"Every veteran, every American, draws from this extraordinary experiment we call America," he said, "and being able to be in the wild places helps to bring us back to, you know, that we're really part of something special here in the United States."

Congress established the Land and Water Conservation Fund in 1965 with royalties collected from onshore and offshore oil and gas projects, not taxpayer dollars. The LWCF has played a major role in establishing many national monuments, including the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument in the Southern California desert. However, Congress often has raided the funds for other uses over the years.

Strong said veterans in particular value public lands as places to hunt, fish, camp, and generally destress and reconnect with friends and family after a long deployment.

"It really is a process of reintegration and healing," he said. "When you can get into the wild places and realize that you're safe, that you're at one with nature, it's a vital piece of all of our healing."

LWCF grants have helped fund more than 41,000 local projects. More than 8,000 veterans have signed a letter calling on Congress to reauthorize the program.

The report is online at vetvoicefoundation.org.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021