Sponsors (8)
Official title: To provide for the conservation of wildlife corridors and habitat connectivity, and for other purposes.
Introduced April 22, 2026 by Donald Sternoff Beyer · Last progress April 22, 2026
The bill directs sustained federal funding, mapping, and intergovernmental coordination to expand wildlife corridors and resilience — delivering conservation and targeted economic support to rural, tribal, and local partners — but imposes recurring taxpayer costs, administrative burdens, potential constraints on federal land uses, and risks uneven impacts on small landowners and communities.
State, Tribal, local, and federal partners gain coordinated planning, shared maps, and data tools to design landscape- and seascape-scale wildlife corridors, improving habitat connectivity and climate-adaptation planning for native species.
Private landowners, tribes, local governments, and nonprofits can receive grants to restore and connect habitats on non‑Federal lands, supporting stewardship jobs and economic activity in rural and agricultural communities.
Clear statutory definitions and alignment with existing laws (and explicit recognition of Tribes and acequia/land-grant communities) reduce legal ambiguity and clarify eligibility/coordination for corridor projects.
Taxpayers face recurring new federal spending (authorized at roughly $135M+ per year starting FY2026, plus program-specific mapping and grant funds), increasing government outlays.
Corridor designations, withdrawals, and associated protections on federal lands can restrict economic uses (mining, leasing, development) and complicate or raise costs for infrastructure projects, potentially reducing local jobs and revenues in affected areas.
Private landowners may incur opportunity costs or face incentives, reporting/contractual obligations, and practical limits on discretion (and smaller owners may struggle to compete for grants), which can deter participation or impose burdens.
Based on analysis of 6 sections of legislative text.
Creates a National Wildlife Corridor System, funds USGS mapping and research, and establishes a grant program to restore and protect habitat connectivity on federal and non‑federal lands.
Creates a coordinated federal program to identify, map, and protect habitat connections for native wildlife across federal, state, tribal, local, and private lands and waters. It directs the USGS to lead a national connectivity mapping and science effort, establishes a National Wildlife Corridor System on federal lands and waters, and funds a grant program to support habitat connectivity projects on non‑Federal lands. Requires federal agencies to adopt prioritization and management approaches that maintain or restore wildlife movement, sets timelines for planning and rule updates, and provides annual appropriations beginning FY2026 to support mapping, agency implementation, and non‑federal grant awards.