One day after U.S. Representative James Comer said there would be no budget cuts to Land Between the Lakes, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said confusion over the funding situation is being monitored in Washington.
Leaders of the counties that comprise the 170,000-acre recreation area received budget information last month in a meeting with the USDA Forestry Service. They were told funding for the next fiscal year appeared to indicate a reduction of the recreation and heritage line item on the budget from $1.8 million last year to $77,000 for the upcoming year.
The lack of funding would affect operating LBL venues and some campgrounds as well as trail maintenance.
Because budget information hasn’t been presented to Congress, McConnell said it was confusing as to why it was mentioned to begin with.
click to download audioManagement of Land Between the Lakes was transferred from the Tennessee Valley Authority to the U.S. Forest Service in 1999. The LBL Protection Act of 1998 called for the Forest Service to develop an Area Plan for LBL that complies with the basic laws that apply to all National Forest units. Recreation and Environmental Education was one of the three main issues listed in the plan.
McConnell said he and former Representative Ed Whitfield worked together on the transfer because they felt the Forestry Service at the time was the best federal agency to oversee the recreation area. He says that may not be the best option now.
click to download audioStewart County Mayor Robin Brandon, whose county has popular LBL attractions such as the Homeplace 1850s and Piney Campground, said last month if Congress decides to eliminate all funding for LBL, there will be plenty of people wanting to file a lawsuit against the federal government to get their ancestry land returned to them.
An official with Land Between the Lakes said budget information for the upcoming fiscal year won’t be available until the Interior and Related Appropriations Bill is passed by Congress and signed into law by the President.
McConnell was in Hopkinsville Thursday to participate in a roundtable discussion with area business, industrial, and agri-business leaders.
