As we await the impending end of the First Session-112th Congress, there is cause for celebrating the great news that LWCF State Assistance was funded at $45 million (an increase of $5 million over FY11) and the competitive grant program proposed by the Department of Interior (DOI) was not. While it is a sheer Christmas miracle that LWCF State Assistance received more funding in a fiscal climate mandating programmatic cuts and eliminations, the more significant victory may be the Congressional directive specifying that zero State Assistance funds are to be used for a competitive grant program. Read more

Let’s Talk – A message from NRPA Board Chair Bob Johnson Last week, I sent out a message asking for input from you on some of the topics that the NRPA Board will discuss at our meeting in January.  Read more

Once again, the country is facing the possibility of a government shutdown while Congress continues to fiddle away. Same song, another verse. The most recent Continuing Resolution (CR) expires at midnight tonight, but Republicans and Democrats have said the FY 2012 appropriations package needed to fund the government through the remainder of the fiscal year will be completed without the need for an extension of the CR. Read more

December 8, 2011, was targeted by House leadership as the adjournment date for the First Session of the 112th Congress. However, with the collapse of the deficit supercommittee and the continuation of budgetary skirmishes, much work remains unfinished and legislators have been put on notice that their presence will be required in Washington for at least another week. Read more