Refuge System Funding

Table of Contents

FY09 House Interior Appropriations Mark-up Release(pdf)

FISCAL YEAR 2009 - What You Can Do

NWRA RIA Testimony - October 9, 2007 (pdf)

FY08 IA Testimony - April 27, 2007 (pdf)

2007 Refuge Friends Budget Cut Survival Kit

Cooperative Alliance for Refuge Enhancement (CARE)

FY 07 Senate Interior Appropriations Testimony (pdf)

FY 06 Senate Interior Appropriations Testimony (pdf)

Funding increase letter - March, 2002 (pdf)

DOI press release - November, 2001 (pdf)

CARE press release - November, 2001 (pdf)

Visit the CARE website

What is the Cooperative Alliance for Refuge Enhancement?
On September 11, 1996, the Cooperative Alliance for Refuge Enhancement (CARE) presented its vision of the desired future condition of the National Wildlife Refuge System in testimony before the House Resources Subcommittee of Fisheries, Wildlife and Oceans. The Alliance is a coalition of 20 non-government conservation and recreation organizations working to secure increased federal funding for refuges. Although the organizations may differ on some refuge management and other policy issues, they all agree that the Refuge System is in a dire situation due to decades of under-funding by Congress and the Administration. Over the past several years, CARE has been an effective voice on Capitol Hill and has helped secure some of the largest ever increases in Refuge System funding.

Who are the CARE members?
CARE members include: American Birding Association, American Fisheries Society, American Sportfishing Association, Assateague Coastal Trust, Congressional Sportsman's Foundation, Defenders of Wildlife, Ducks Unlimited, International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, Izaak Walton League of America, National Audubon Society, National Rifle Association of America, National Wildlife Federation, National Wildlife Refuge Association, Safari Club International, The Wildlife Society, The Wilderness Society, Trout Unlimited, Wildlife Forever, Wildlife Legislative Fund of America, and the Wildlife Management Institute.

Become a CARE Supporter

What do they CARE about?
CARE members stand united behind a Refuge System that:

• Provides important habitats for migratory birds and for the recovery of species threatened with extinction;
• Serves as a catalyst for conservation of the nation's diverse array of fish, wildlife and other biota;
  
• Provides a national network that helps monitor the status and trends of America's fish and wildlife;
  
• Is widely recognized for scientific excellence in the management of wildlife and habitat;
  
• Sustains habitats and fish and wildlife that provide exceptional public opportunities for compatible wildlife-dependent recreation;
  
• Serves as a model for cooperative management with surrounding public and private lands;
  
• Provides a measure against which the use or abuse of unprotected lands can be gauged;
  
• Is managed as a true system, with appropriate staffing and operating funding to fulfill its mission.

What is the Refuge System Funding Crisis?
Severe funding and staffing shortfalls have led to the decline of refuge habitats and wildlife populations and have put popular wildlife-dependent recreation programs at risk. Aging facilities and equipment, invasive exotic species, human encroachment, pollution inadequate water supplies and other problems plague many refuges, making it nearly impossible for refuges to meet their conservation mission. Management programs that help recover endangered species, restore damaged habitats, address threats to water quality and other problems are left unaccomplished on an alarming number of refuges. Most refuges are operated only with minimal staffing, and approximately 200 refuges have no staff on-site.

In 1997, the CARE group analyzed the current refuge funding levels and devised a feasible strategy for reducing and eventually eliminating the now $2-billion funding backlog in time for the Refuge System's centennial in 2003. Each year CARE publishes a report called Restoring America's Wildlife Legacy: A Plan to Rejuvenate Our National Wildlife Refuge System , which recommends specific budget figures that will eliminate the system's growing backlog. Since its original publication, the Plan has been revised to reflect current budget realities; it now calls upon Congress and the Administration to more than double the annual Refuge System budget to $700 million. The group also publishes an accountability report demonstrating the expenditure and use of funds for projects at refuge stations.

Since CARE's establishment, Congress has responded to needs of refuges by providing modest funding increases for each fiscal year. While those increases have helped relieve the most critical needs, significant additional funds are still needed. CARE believes that refuge operations and maintenance annual funding needs to be increased by nearly two times to the following levels in order for the Refuge System to meet its wildlife conservation mission:

Despite the best efforts of the Refuge System employees and the CARE group, the funding shortfall is resulting in the loss of opportunities for enhancing wildlife populations, restoring degraded habitats, rebuilding endangered species' populations, and providing additional opportunities for wildlife viewing, wildlife education, hunting and fishing. A substantial investment is needed for the system to continue to function and "benefit present and future generations."

Refuge Association Leads CARE Media Blitz
In November 2001, CARE released a report at a national press conference attended by a tri-partisan assemblage of key members of Congress, entitled Shortchanging America's Wildlife, which details the funding crisis threatening America's most important wildlife conservation resource, the National Wildlife Refuge System. The report calls on President Bush and Congress to address America's need to connect with nature by more than doubling the budget of the National Wildlife Refuge System to $700 million annually, beginning in FY2003, the Refuge System centennial. National wildlife refuges have never been more at risk. At a time when the nation is under threat and the public is turning to natural places for solace and recreation, we must safeguard one of our most important national assets and protect a legacy created by President Theodore Roosevelt nearly 100 years ago for the benefit of future generations.

The National Wildlife Refuge System has played a central role in saving endangered species like the Bald Eagle, protecting open space, and providing more than 36 million Americans annually an opportunity to experience our country's natural wonders. But without immediate attention from the Administration and Congress, the Refuge System is in danger of being unable to do the same in the next 100 years. Severe funding and staffing shortfalls have led to declining refuge habitats and wildlife populations, aging facilities and infrastructure and the cancellation of popular wildlife-oriented public use programs. Unless the Refuge System gets the funding it needs, future generations of hikers, hunters, environmentalists, families and school children may miss out on a vital part of the nation's heritage.

The report is part of a larger media strategy by the CARE group to generate Congressional and Administration support for refuges with an eye to the coming Refuge System centennial. Two additional press events were held at J.N. "Ding" Darling NWR in Florida and at the San Diego Refuge Complex in California. All three events generated extensive media coverage in local and national radio, print and television outlets. The report also served as a tool for local refuge support (Friends) groups to gain press locally in an effort to highlight their refuges' funding needs and provide a vehicle to attract support from their members of members of Congress. The efforts of Friends groups to bring this important issue to the fore will serve to reinforce the success of CARE's work at the national level.

Click here for links to CARE group members

click here to learn how to become a CARE Supporter

Click here to view the Shortchanging America's Wildlife media report (pdf)

Click here to view the Restoring America's Wildlife policy report (pdf)

Click here to see a list of media coverage generated by CARE's reports

Click here to see what the CEO's of the CARE members have to say (pdf)

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