(3) for the development of outdoor recreation facil- 
ities. It also authorizes use of a portion of the fund 
by Federal agencies in acquiring land for recreation 
and conservation purposes. 
Up to 60 percent of the Land and Water Conser- 
vation Fund (which had a total authorization of 
$900 million in fiscal year 1977) is available for 
grants to States (which include America Samoa, 
Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands); and 
States may pass all or part of the money on to local 
governments. In order to be eligible for a matching 
grant, a State must have: 
e An approved Statewide comprehensive outdoor 
recreation plan (SCORP); 
e Designated the State agency with whom the Secre- 
tary of the Interior is to deal; 
e Evaluated the demand for, and supply of, outdoor 
recreation resources in the State; 
® Established a program for the implementation of 
the Statewide plan; 
e Provided such other information as the Secretary 
may request; and 
e Provided opportunity for public participation in 
plan development. 
Since the inception of the fund in 1965, through 
1968, more than $3.5 billion has been appropriated 
by Congress. Of this amount, $1.886 billion has 
been earmarked for use by the States and local gov- 
ernments and $1.625 billion has been used by Fed- 
eral agencies. 
In addition, the lands and facilities to be acquired 
must be open to the general public. Development of 
basic—rather than elaborate—facilities is favored. 
Priority is given to projects serving urban populations. 
Grants are not available for operation and mainte- 
nance. The recipient State must dedicate the facility 
to outdoor recreation in perpetuity and be respon- 
sible for its operation and maintenance. Under cer- 
tain conditions, State matching money may come 
from other Federal assistance programs, regional 
commissions, or donations. 
With regard to the portion of the fund for Federal 
agencies (no less than 40 percent of the fund), 
Congress must approve any actual acquisition. The 
land acquired must be for use in some national pro- 
gram, 1.e., national parks, seashores, lakeshores, 
forest, wild and scenic rivers, trails, historic areas, 
wildlife refuges, etc. A national recreation area is 
managed by either the National Park Service, the 
Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Man- 
agement, or the U.S. Forest Service of the Depart- 
ment of Agriculture. 
Revenues from the sale of oil and gas from the 
Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) now constitute part 
of the Land and Water Conservation Fund. In the 
seven years following the enactment of this provision 
in 1969, a total of $1.6 billion was dedicated to the 
Fund from OCS revenues.''® Proposals have been 
made to enlarge the share of the OCS revenues that 
are dedicated to the Fund and to earmark them for 
acquisition of public shoreline and access in coastal 
States. This would be in addition to the amount of 
matching funds now available to coastal States from 
the fund. 
e Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service 
Organic Act [77 Stat. 49 (1936), 16 U.S.C. I-3]. 
Under this law, the Heritage Conservation and Rec- 
reation Service provides two forms of technical as- 
sistance to Federal agencies, State and local govern- 
ments, and private interests in relation to public 
recreation areas, facilities, and opportunities. 
1) Information Assistance.-—The Service main- 
tains an Outdoor Recreation Information Clearing- 
house that provides available information and data 
pertaining to the planning, developing, financing, and 
managing of outdoor recreation programs, and to 
tesearch and educational activities relative to out- 
door recreation. There is no land acquisition under 
this program, and the Service provides no financial 
assistance. 
2) Acquisitional Assistance —With this aspect of 
the technical assistance program, the Service works 
with State and local governments and private inter- 
ests to obtain private contributions of land, money, 
or support for public outdoor recreation areas, facil- 
ities, and programs. Two methods are used, neither 
of which involves any stated eligibility requirements 
to be met by the recipient. 
The first method is for the Service or a State or 
local government to locate a land resource with 
public recreational potential, and then for the Service 
to work with that government in developing an ac- 
quisition program that private contributors can af- 
ford. To the extent that financial assistance is ob- 
tained, the land acquired is purchased by the State 
or local government and operated and maintained by 
it as a public recreation facility. The Service does 
not acquire the land, nor does it contribute any 
money for its acquisition. 
The second method is to identify any private in- 
terest already holding Jand with public recreational 
potential—including access to such lands—and at- 
tempt to persuade them to donate it to a State or 
local government for public recreational purposes. 
This donation can take the form of: (1) a gift in 
fee of the lands, (2) grant of a lease or easement, or 
(3) a management agreement between the donor and 
the State or local government in relation to the land. 
Again, the recipient State or local government is 
responsible for the operation and maintenance, not 
115 U.S. Congress. House of Representatives, Committee On 
Interior and Insular Affairs. Hearing To Amend the Land and 
Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965, and to Amend the His- 
toric Preservation Act of 1966. Washington, D.C., Government 
Printing Office, 1975, p. 95. 
IV—54 
