Amata Cosponsors the Great America Outdoors Act 250

Pago Pago - Congresswoman Uifa'atali Amata is an original cosponsor of the Great America Outdoors Act 250, or the GAOA 250 - named in honor of both the sesquicentennial of the United States and the landmark Great America Outdoors Act enacted in 2020.

The Great American Outdoors Act 250, H.R. 9250, is a newly introduced bipartisan bill to modernize and maintain the National Park Service, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Forest Service, and the Bureau of Indian Education in celebration of America's 250th anniversary. Led by Natural Resources Committee Chairman Bruce Westerman (R-AR), the only forester in Congress, and Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-CA), with Congresswoman Amata and others, the bill has deep support in the Committee, and already has the backing of over 100 supporting organizations.

"I'm delighted when we can advance truly bipartisan legislation, especially on substantial policy," said Congresswoman Amata. "This five-year investment in America's beautiful places focuses on areas of the most need, and is a fitting celebration of our 250^th anniversary."

The GAOA250 invests $1.9 billion annually in America's national parks, public lands, and Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) facilities over each of the next five years, with the parks marked for the largest subset of the overall funding. Funded by private donations, onshore energy revenue, and foreign visitor to parks fees, GAOA250 enhances access, invests in some of our nation's most treasured assets, creates jobs, and revitalizes adjacent local economies.

The effort focuses on high-priority deferred maintenance projects, in part by establishing the America's Legacy Restoration Fund, and emphasizes restoring campgrounds, trails, boat ramps, hunting/fishing sites and other recreational infrastructure. It also supports 72,500 jobs across the country and $26 billion in revenue for rural gateway communities that are neighbors to our national parks, national forests, wildlife refuges, and public lands. It provides an economic boost to the $1.3 trillion outdoor economy, and in specific related instances to these goals, allows transfers to the Federal Highway Administration for transportation projects.

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