This is a Critical Time for Wildlife Conservation

State fish and wildlife agencies bear the primary responsibility for managing wildlife species, but are almost entirely funded by user fees paid by hunters and anglers.  Sportsmen have long been a key pillar of financial support for wildlife conservation.  But today, in the face of habitat loss and habitat change due to threats such as invasive species and climate change, management challenges are increasing while traditional revenue sources are not.  

Call to Action: Support Dedicated Funding for Wildlife in Global Warming Legislation

As fish and wildlife are increasingly affected by global warming, bills addressing climate change represent a tremendous opportunity for the wildlife community to achieve the stable funding state wildlife agencies need to implement the wildlife action plans and protect wildlife from global warming. Now is the time to make your voice heard by speaking out in support of the inclusion of wildlife funding as a standard component of any climate change bill!

Senators Lieberman (I-CT) and Warner (R-VA) recently introduced global warming legislation that would limit the amount of greenhouse gases and provide significant funding to help protect wildlife from the impacts of global warming. This bill is called America's Climate Security Act. Starting within five years, the bill will reduce global warming pollution from major emitters such as power plants and oil refineries by about two percent each year from current levels. The Climate Security Act will provide an estimated $125 billion through the year 2030 to protect America’s fish and wildlife, great waters, and other natural resources from the climate changes that can no longer be avoided. Funding will be distributed to well established and successful wildlife conservation and natural resource management programs at the federal and state level. This includes funding for implementation of State Wildlife Action Plans. See the bottom of the page for more resources, including fact sheets and analysis of this bill, also called the Lieberman-Warner bill. For more information about the bill and global warming solutions, see our Advocacy page.