The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) matters to Montana families. It’s not just about protecting the Blackfoot or the Yellowstone. It’s about the places in our backyards where kids can learn and grow.
Take Columbia Falls. In April 2025, the community celebrated the opening of a 12,000-square-foot skatepark at Fenholt Park. Years in the making, the project came together through private fundraising, community donations, and a crucial LWCF grant. Without LWCF, the project might never have happened. Now kids of all ages have a place to challenge themselves, build confidence, and connect with their community.
And this isn’t the first time LWCF has made a difference here at home. The program has also helped fund the Columbia Falls city pool, tennis courts, and many other public parks and outdoor spaces in the Flathead Valley that families enjoy every day. These are the kinds of places where childhood memories are made and communities thrive.
This is what LWCF does best: it invests in our kids, our communities, and our future. And it doesn’t cost taxpayers a dime. Funded by royalties from offshore oil and gas drilling, LWCF takes something that belongs to the American people and puts it back into our communities, parks, and public lands.
But right now, LWCF is under threat. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum has released a secretarial order that would add layers of unnecessary red tape to community projects like the skatepark. This betrays Montana families who rely on these investments to raise the next generation of conservation-minded leaders.
Senator Daines was proud to take credit for LWCF’s permanent reauthorization. Now, we are counting on him to publicly oppose these roadblocks and take action to preserve Montanan’s outdoor access.
Rebecca Powell
Columbia Falls