April 17, 2023

The Honorable Chuck Schumer
Majority Leader
United States Senate

The Honorable Mitch McConnell
Minority Leader
United States Senate

Dear Majority Leader Schumer and Minority Leader McConnell,

Our coalition of diverse organizations, businesses, professional societies, state fish and wildlife agencies, and tribal nations collectively represent millions of Americans. We are writing to express our thanks for your leadership on this bill and respectfully request that you support and advance the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act (S.1149) toward passage in the Senate. This bill was reintroduced by Senators Heinrich (D-NM) and Tillis (R-NC) on March 30th and is currently gathering bipartisan cosponsors.

The Recovering America’s Wildlife Act would immediately address the biodiversity crisis by helping to recover and conserve species at risk by investing $1.3 billion annually for states and territories and $97.5 million for tribal nations for on-the-ground conservation projects. The legislation funds the implementation of congressionally mandated State Wildlife Action Plans, which outline specific, science -based conservation actions necessary to recover and sustain healthy fish and wildlife populations. Similarly, tribal nations will be able to expand successful conservation efforts on their lands, which provide vital habitat for hundreds of fish and wildlife species, including more than 500 species that are listed as threatened or endangered. It also will support much needed investments in continued economic growth and job creation in Tribal communities. The Recovering America’s Wildlife Act would be the only federal conservation program that provides sustained funding to tribal nations and state fish and wildlife agencies for the proactive conservation of at-risk species.

One-third of the fish and wildlife species in the United States are at risk of becoming threatened or endangered. The challenges facing our nation’s fish and wildlife are daunting, but this legislation provides a solution. The Recovering America’s Wildlife Act will provide state and territorial fish and wildlife agencies and tribal fish and wildlife managers with dependable, dedicated resources to address more than 12,000 species in need of proactive, voluntary conservation before a listing as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act is warranted.
This legislation represents a smart, future focused investment that will also strengthen the economy and create a significant number of jobs that help grow the $862 billion outdoor economy and bring support to key sectors such as agriculture and forestry – all while supporting the conservation of America’s fish, wildlife, and the habitats they depend on. Public polling demonstrates that more than 70 percent of Americans support this bill and less than 5 percent oppose.

Taking measures to conserve species before they are on the brink of extinction and ensuring healthy populations is fiscally responsible and will help save taxpayer dollars and prevent these species from needing costly “emergency room” measures under the Endangered Species Act – truly an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Rather than defaulting to regulation and litigation, this bill saves America’s imperiled wildlife through collaborative and constructive voluntary partnerships. This collaborative approach to conservation is good for wildlife, good for taxpayers, good for landowners, good for business and good for America. Further, this bill builds on the successful restoration track records of state fish and wildlife agencies which for more than eight decades have successfully managed game species.

Congress passed the Pittman-Robertson Act in 1937 and the Dingell-Johnson Act in 1950 to restore iconic game species such as deer, elk, striped bass, and wild turkey. Passage of the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act would complete the safety net so state fish and wildlife agencies and tribes have resources to conserve all fish and wildlife species. This Congress can join the legacy of the 75th and 81st Congress’s to ensure our nation’s rich fish and wildlife legacy is sustained for future generations.

Over 100 million Americans participate in some form of wildlife recreation. Increasingly, Americans from all walks of life have turned to the outdoors and nature to improve physical and mental well-being. Creating thousands of jobs immediately, restoring natural resources infrastructure, increasing access to the outdoors, and reducing long-term costs through enactment of the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act will unify Americans and elected officials that represent diverse constituencies.

Thank you for your consideration of our request to support a Senate floor vote and passage of the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act. We thank you for your support of America’s fish and wildlife and look forward to working with you to enact this groundbreaking legislation.

Sincerely,

Accent Signs LLC
American Bird Conservancy
American Clean Power Association
American Fisheries Society
American Fisheries Society, Colorado/Wyoming
Chapter
American Society of Landscape Architects
American Sportfishing Association
Archery Trade Association
Arkansas Chapter of The Wildlife Society
Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies
Atlantic Salmon Federation
Audubon California
Audubon Delta (AR, LA, MS)
Audubon Great Lakes
Audubon Great Plains
Audubon Mid-Atlantic
Audubon Minnesota/Iowa/Missouri
Audubon New York
Audubon Rockies
Audubon South Carolina
Audubon Texas
Audubon Vermont
Audubon Washington
Backcountry Hunters & Anglers
Barry Conservation District
Bass Pro Shops
Bat Conservation International
Bayou Land Conservancy
Belltown Sportsmen’ Club, Inc.
Bexar Audubon Society
Bristol Fish & Game Association
Bucks County Audubon Society
Buffalo Nations Grasslands Alliance
Cabela’s
Caddo Lake Institute
California Invasive Plant Council
Central Mountains and Plains Section of The
Wildlife Society
Cibolo Center for Conservation
Clark Fork Coalition
Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation
Connecticut Audubon Society
Connecticut Conservation Officers Association
Connecticut Falconers Association
Connecticut Hunter Education Association
Connecticut River Conservancy
Connecticut Trappers Association Inc
Conococheague Audubon Society
Conservation InSight
Dallas Zoo
Delmarva Birding Weekends
DLF Consulting, Inc.
Ducks Unlimited
East Glastonbury Fish and Game Assoc. Inc
Eastern PA Coalition for Abandoned Mine
Reclamation (EPCAMR)
Ecological Society of America
Entomological Society of America
Environment America
Fin and Fur Films
Firstlight Printing & Graphics, LLC
Fisheries Advisory Council – State of CT
Freshwater Mollusk Conservation Society
Friends of CE/FS
Friends Of Connecticut Sportsmen
Friends of Scarborough Marsh
Friends of the Fort Worth Nature Center & Refuge
Georgia Audubon
Georgia Chapter AFS
Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance
Gulf Coast Bird Observatory
Heart of the Rockies Initiative
Hill Country Alliance
Hill Country Conservancy
Houston Wilderness
HuntStand
Innovative Wildlife Management Services, LLC
Izaak Walton League of America
Juniata Valley Audubon Society
Kansas Chapter of the American Fisheries Society
Kansas Chapter of The Wildlife Society
Kootenai Tribe of Idaho
Lake Erie Islands Conservancy
Lake Erie Islands Nature and Wildlife Center
Lehigh Valley Audubon Society
Maine Audubon
Maine Conservation Voters
Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association
Maine Rivers
Maryland/Delaware Chapter of The Wildlife Society
Michigan United Conservation Clubs
Midcoast Conservancy
MN Chapter of The Wildlife Society
Montana Audubon
Montana Trout Unlimited
Mule Deer Foundation
National Aquarium
National Association of State Foresters
National Audubon Society
National Deer Association
National Wild Turkey Federation
National Wildlife Federation
Native American Fish and Wildlife Society
Natural Resources Council of Maine
Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin
NC Chapter of the Wildlife Society
New London Windham County League of Sportsmen
North American Falconers Association
North Carolina Wildlife Federation
North Dakota Chapter of The Wildlife Society
North Dakota Natural Resources Trust
Oregon Chapter of American Fisheries Society
Oregon Wild
Oregon Zoo
Outdoor Industry Association
Pennsylvania Biological Survey
Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Fisheries
Society
Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen &
Conservationists
Pennsylvania Society for Ornithology
Pennsylvania State Chapter of the Wildlife Society
Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever
Pines and Prairies Land Trust
Southern New England Chapter of the American
Fisheries Society
Presque Isle Audubon
Put-in-Bay Township Park District
Quittapahilla Audubon Society
REI Co-op
Sageland Collaborative
San Marcos River Foundation
Save Our Allegheny Ridges
Seneca Rocks Audubon Society
Seven Mountains Audubon, Lewisburg, PA
South Dakota Chapter of the Wildlife Society
Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy
Southern Maine Conservation Collaborative
Sportsmen for the Boundary Waters
Strategic Stewardship Initiative
Texas Alliance for America’s Fish and Wildlife
Texas Conservation Alliance
Texas Land Trust Council
Texas Unitarian Universalist Justice Ministry
The California North Coast Chapter of The Wildlife Society
The Conservation Angler
The Conservation Fund
The Maine Chapter of The Wildlife Society
The Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy, Texas Chapter
The Wildlife Society
The Wildlife Society, California North Coast Chapter
Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership
Tracy Aviary
Travis Audubon Society, Inc.
Utah Chapter of The Wildlife Society
Valley Forge Audubon Society
Wallingford Rod and Gun Club
West Virginia Chapter of the American Fisheries Society
Western Pennsylvania Conservancy
WHC (Wildlife Habitat Council)
White River Marine Group
Wildlands Network
Wildlife Ecology Institute
Wildlife Management Institute
Woodland Park Zoo
World Wildlife Fund
Wyoming Chapter of The Wildlife Society