WASHINGTON – The Department of the Interior will invest $1.6 billion in 2021 to address critical deferred maintenance projects and improve transportation and recreation infrastructure in national parks, national wildlife refuges and recreation areas, and at Bureau of Indian Education schools. This unprecedented investment will support an estimated 18,851 jobs and contribute $2 billion to the nation’s gross domestic product in 2021. The funding was made possible by the newly created National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund established in 2020 by the Great American Outdoors Act.
The Great American Outdoors Act provides for up to $1.6 billion a year for five years to help address a multi-billion-dollar deferred maintenance backlog at national parks, on other public lands, and at tribal schools.
“President Biden has made clear that creating new jobs and stimulating our economy is a top priority of this Administration. Through the Great American Outdoors Act, we are investing in the American people, and in the future of our public lands and sacred spaces,” said Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland. “We must address the long-delayed maintenance needs of the nation’s aging buildings and infrastructure. Importantly, this funding also honors our commitment to Tribal communities by investing in Bureau of Indian Education-funded schools for current and future generations.”