The Habitat Conservation Fund has been Protected

Thanks to our friends at the Sierra Nevada Alliance for the following: 

In 1990, voters approved Proposition 117, which most people remember outlawed mountain lion hunting, but that also created the Habitat Conservation Fund (HCF), appropriating $30 million a year for land acquisition and restoration projects to support mountain lion habitat and habitat for other critical species. To date, the HCF has provided funds to protect nearly one million acres of habitat all across California. And nearly 40 years later, the HCF remains the only ongoing, reliable, and flexible source of funds for protecting, enhancing, and restoring wildlife habitat and fisheries that are vital to maintaining California’s quality of life. Through a funding matching requirement, the HCF also leverages important private funding for conservation and restoration projects. 

A couple of weeks ago in Sacramento, the legislature negotiated a budget agreement that included a proposal to sweep $45 million already allocated to the HCF, and language that would eliminate the existing requirement to appropriate $30 million per year to the HCF through 2030. This would have meant that more than $100 million of funding critical for meeting the state’s 30×30, nature-based solutions to climate change, and wildlife connectivity goals were at stake. 

In an inspiring show of unity and determination, we have fantastic news to celebrate:  

The Habitat Conservation Fund has been protected from budget cuts this legislative session! 

This victory wouldn’t have been possible without the collective pressure and the steadfast commitment of allies in the Legislature. In the face of a very challenging budget deficit, thanks to the advocacy of environmental organizations and state leaders who sided with wildlife, nature, and California voters, the legacy and ongoing importance of the HCF has been protected. 

This result would NOT have happened without a collective engagement and quick hustle. The muscles built with efforts like this will also serve biodiversity and nature well in the future, as the threats keep coming.   

A special thank you goes out to Senator Catherine Blakespear and Senator Brian Dahle for their passionate advocacy. This could also not have been accomplished without the crucial support from Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas, Senate Leader pro tem Mike McGuire, Senator Scott Wiener, and Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel.