What Happened?
If you've ever hiked a national park trail, camped in a national forest, or visited a federal wildlife refuge, you've used land that is likely falling behind on repairs. The Legacy Restoration Fund, created by the Great American Outdoors Act in 2020, expired after fiscal 2025, leaving five agencies without dedicated money for a $46.2 billion deferred maintenance backlog.
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) reported that deferred maintenance at five federal land agencies reached $46.2 billion in fiscal 2025, up $19.4 billion from fiscal 2020, while the Legacy Restoration Fund (LRF), created by the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) in 2020, provided dedicated repair funding for five years.
The backlog covers five agencies: the National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the Bureau of Indian Education. It grew $19.4 billion, or 75 percent, between fiscal year 2020 and fiscal year 2025, even as the LRF sent dedicated money to repairs each year.
Why Does it Matter to Me?
Deferred maintenance across five federal land agencies reached $46.2 billion in fiscal 2025, a $19.4 billion, or 75 percent, increase from fiscal 2020, according to the Congressional Research Service.
The National Park Service alone carries $24.2 billion of the total, about 52 percent. The U.S. Forest Service accounts for $10.8 billion, the Bureau of Land Management $6.6 billion, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service $3.5 billion, and the Bureau of Indian Education $1.0 billion.
Two bipartisan bills propose to restart dedicated funding: the America the Beautiful Act in the Senate, which would raise the annual cap to $2.0 billion, and a House bill that would provide $1.9 billion a year from fiscal years 2027 through 2031.
Both Sides, Now
The Trump administration and Congress have clashed over how to allocate mandatory Land and Water Conservation Fund spending.
The White House proposed devoting $387 million, or 43 percent, of the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), a separate $900 million-a-year pot for conservation and land purchases, toward deferred maintenance instead. Congress rejected that proposal in the fiscal year 2026 spending law, providing more money for land acquisition than the President requested.
The House bill would ban new federal land acquisition entirely and instead draw on private donations, onshore energy revenue, and new fees charged to foreign visitors.
What Happens Next?
Neither bill has become law, and new maintenance needs keep accumulating.
Will Congress restore dedicated funding before the backlog grows further, or will the dispute over land acquisition stall a deal?
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