Oregon Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley are part of a bipartisan group that introduced a new bill to help reduce the maintenance backlog at national parks and other land maintenance agencies.

The bill, known as the Great American Outdoors Act, would address the deferred maintenance backlog and provide permanent funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund. If passed, it will address a nearly $12 billion backlog in delayed maintenance projects at the National Park Service.

The bill will also include funding to address the deferred maintenance backlog at the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Indian Education.

The Land and Water Conservation Fund takes profits from offshore oil and gas leases, not taxpayer money. The concept is to take revenue from offshore oil and gas to conserve parks, wildlife refuges, forests, open spaces, trails and wildlife habitats.

The annual level of funding is $900 million, but Congress usually appropriates only a portion of this amount. If the Great American Outdoors Act is supported, full funding of the conservation fund would be supported.

“I hope for the sake of our natural places and parks that (President Donald Trump) and Senate Republicans finally allow this funding to get across the finish line,” said Merkley.

Conservationists and hunters in Oregon applauded the support of the bipartisan Senate Bill 3422, which was sponsored by Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., and has 57 co-sponsors, including Merkley and Wyden. It still requires passage by the Senate, then the House, before going to the White House.

“Deschutes County, and all of Oregon really, depend heavily on public lands,” said Ian Isaacson, chairman of the Oregon chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers. “This bill would contribute money to the backlog of maintenance on our public lands. It would be a game-changer and a huge step forward.”

Past recipients for Land and Water Conservation Fund money include the city of Madras for a spray park, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs for ball field rehabilitation and the city of Prineville for the Crooked River Wetlands Park.

“It truly is a benefit for communities,” said Isaacson. “It’s a win-win for the public as a whole and for our public lands.”