JACKSON — As America’s 250th birthday approaches, Congress is moving toward reauthorizing funding that gave billions to the National Park Service and funded several repairs and projects in Grand Teton and Yellowstone.

On June 17, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee advanced the “America The Beautiful Act” in a unanimous, bipartisan vote. 

The bill would reauthorize the National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund, which was initially established under the 2020 Great American Outdoors Act. Money from that fund is currently being used to improve Grand Teton’s Moose-Wilson Road and Yellowstone’s Yellowstone River Bridge.

The bill would give national parks $6.65 billion over five years for infrastructure repairs and projects. That’s roughly the same amount that parks were initially afforded under the original 2020 act.

Lawmakers are making passing the legislation a priority this summer, according to one Park Service watchdog.

“I think that the people that support GAOA, including myself, are taking advantage of the 250th anniversary of the country, and using that as another program to highlight the excellence of our national park systems,” said Rob Wallace, a Teton Village resident who oversaw the Park Service during the first Trump administration.

In office, Wallace championed the Great American Outdoors Act.

Wyoming’s congressional delegation appears to be on board with reinstating the funding.

“The first five years of the Legacy Restoration Fund under the original Great American Outdoors Act delivered substantial progress on deferred maintenance across the national forest system,” said Rep. Harriet Hageman, R-Wyo., at a June House Committee on Natural Resources hearing.

While most Great American Outdoors Act funding is for parks, some of it also supports the U.S. Forest Service and other agencies.

U.S. Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., echoed the support for GAOA in an emailed statement Tuesday.

“The Great American Outdoors Act includes a significant investment to address the deferred maintenance backlog at our national parks in Wyoming and across the country,” Barrasso wrote. “We need durable solutions to ensure our national parks and forests remain safe, open, and well-maintained for public access. This is especially critical for Wyoming’s gateway communities that our national parks and forests support.”

Jackson is Grand Teton’s gateway community, while Cooke City is Yellowstone’s eastern gateway.

The Legacy Restoration Fund expired after fiscal year 2025, meaning it ended on Sept. 30, 2025. Over four fiscal years, the fund bankrolled 29 projects in Wyoming with an estimated $600 million project budget.

“I think it’s a tremendous piece of legislation that’s going to help not only the National Park System, but specifically Grand Teton and Yellowstone,” said Wallace.

Legacy Restoration Funds have helped Grand Teton improve the Moose Wilson Road and also install a new, “badly needed” water system in Colter Bay, according to Wallace and Park Service websites. In Yellowstone, funds have supported roads, historic building renovations and employee housing improvements.

The Great American Outdoors Act also allotted an annual $900 million in permanent funding to the existing Land and Water Conservation Fund, which is the federal government’s primary vehicle for purchasing and conserving land. In 2024, the park service used the fund to purchase the Kelly Parcel, state land now part of Teton park.

The Congressional bills would not impact the Land and Water Conservation Fund because the original 2020 bill dedicated offshore federal oil and gas revenue to that fund in perpetuity.

At the end of fiscal year 2025, the park service estimated it needed roughly $24 billion in repairs.

“The national parks have been suffering from a degradation of facilities for decades,” said Wallace. “They haven’t had the money to keep up with the maintenance requirements for the parks.”

The Senate bill is one of two related bills moving through Congress.

On June 12, the House introduced a similar bill, “the Great American Outdoors Act 250,” during the House Committee on Natural Resources field hearing in Hot Springs, Arkansas. The meeting gave lawmakers the opportunity to address deferred maintenance, public access issues and needed infrastructure improvements.

The House bill would reauthorize the original Great American Outdoors Act, dividing funds among five federal land management agencies. The National Park Service would receive 70% of the funding, and the U.S. Forest Service would get 15%. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife and the Bureau of Indian Education would receive 5% each.