Congress funds national park repairs with energy royalties and foreign visitor fees

What it does

This bill renames and expands the National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund to the 'America's Legacy Restoration Fund' and dedicates it to fixing deferred maintenance (delayed repairs) at national parks, forests, wildlife refuges, and public lands. It funds this through energy development revenues on federal land (50% of oil, gas, coal, and renewable energy royalties), donations, and new entrance fees for foreign visitors ($100+ per visit, $250 for annual pass). The fund allocates money to five agencies (70% to National Park Service, 15% to Forest Service, 5% each to Fish & Wildlife, Bureau of Land Management, and Bureau of Indian Education) for repairs, modernization, and outdoor recreation projects, with strict transparency requirements and congressional oversight.

Why we flagged it

The bill's core mechanism is a dedicated revenue stream and fund allocation for deferred maintenance across five federal land-management agencies. It is a straightforward infrastructure and stewardship bill, not a tax carve-out, subsidy, or deregulation.

What the text implies

• The 50% energy development revenue deposit may create a structural incentive for Interior to approve oil, gas, and coal leases to maximize fund deposits, potentially conflicting with conservation goals.
• The $1.9 billion annual cap on fund deposits (with excess going to General Fund) may leave significant deferred maintenance unfunded in high-cost years, limiting the bill's stated purpose.
• Foreign visitor fees ($100–$250) may be passed through to tour operators and travel agencies, indirectly raising costs for international tourists but not directly affecting U.S. citizens.
• The 5-year timeline for private matching donations, after which unmatched projects are reallocated, may disadvantage smaller or less-visible parks in fundraising competition.
• Cooperative agreements with nonprofits and private entities, while subject to NEPA review, delegate project execution to non-federal actors, potentially reducing direct federal accountability.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

Ordinary citizens gain improved access to and safety at national parks and public lands through systematic repair of deteriorating infrastructure, trails, and facilities. The transparency and accountability mechanisms (public dashboards, annual reporting, GAO audits) strengthen democratic oversight. The foreign visitor fee is a modest revenue mechanism that does not burden U.S. citizens.

Who stands to gain

• construction and engineering contractors
• nonprofit conservation organizations (National Park Foundation, National Forest Foundation, etc.)
• outdoor recreation and tourism operators

Named in the bill

National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, Bureau of Indian Education, Department of Interior, Department of Agriculture, National Park Foundation, National Forest Foundation, Foundation for America's Public Lands, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, GAO (Government Accountability Office)

Where it stands

263 cosponsors: 132 Democrats, 131 Republicans.

• Jun 10, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• Jun 10, 2026 — Referred to House Committee on Agriculture and House Committee on Natural Resources · Congress.gov: “Referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the Committee on Agriculture, for a period…”
• Jun 12, 2026 — Hearing held · Congress.gov: “Committee Hearings Held”
• Jun 24, 2026 — Markup held in committee · Congress.gov: “Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held”
• Jun 24, 2026 — Reported out of committee · Congress.gov: “Ordered to be Reported in the Nature of a Substitute (Amended) by Voice Vote”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

33 lobbying clients named this bill on 33 disclosure filings across 1 quarter, Jun 2026 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $22,224,881 in lobbying spend. A filing names 11 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 98% of bills with at least one filing.

Bruce Westerman, the sponsor, reported $1,146,425 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• Chamber of Commerce of the U.S.A. — $16,950,000 on 1 filing
• Coca-cola Company — $1,450,000 on 1 filing
• U.S. Travel Association — $800,000 on 1 filing
• Americans for Prosperity — $660,000 on 1 filing
• Specialty Equipment Market Association — $395,000 on 1 filing

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 21, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.