Fiscal Year 2018 Land and Water Conservation Fund Core Project Submissions

IM 2016-055
Instruction Memorandum

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20240-0036
http://www.blm.gov

March 10, 2013

 

In Reply Refer To:

2100 (350) P

 

EMS TRANSMISSION 03/23/2016

Instruction Memorandum No. 2016-055

Expires: 09/30/2019

 

To:                   All State Directors

From:               Assistant Director, Energy, Minerals, and Realty Management

Subject:           Fiscal Year 2018 Land and Water Conservation Fund Core Project Submissions                                                                DD:  04/22/16

 

Program Area:  Land Acquisition.

Purpose:  This Instruction Memorandum (IM) requests submission of Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) Core project land acquisition funding proposals to the Washington Office Division of Lands, Realty, and Cadastral Survey (WO-350). 

Policy/Action:  Submission of annual proposals for LWCF land acquisition funding must be consistent with the LWCF FY 2018 Submission Process.  Program guidance and submission formats are contained in attachments 1 thru 6 of this IM.  Submissions are limited to eligible priorities as described in Attachment 1, and a completed narrative, fact sheet, questionnaire, representative maps and digital photographs must accompany any nomination. 

Timeframe:  Submissions are due to WO-350 by April 22, 2016, without exception.

Budget Impact:  Submission of annual proposals is expected to have minimal impact on budget.

Background:  Each year the BLM submits proposals for out-year budgets, as part of the development of the President’s Budget Request for the following year.  The Department of the Interior will begin the process in the next few months.  A part of this exercise is to develop funding targets for the land acquisition program and to identify the individual properties within each eligible project area to be incorporated into the FY 2018 budget proposals.  Funding proposals requested in this directive will initiate a selection process followed by funding recommendations presented to the Director.

Field response to the annual submission process remains strong and has exceeded both available cost targets and funds appropriated.  In order to meet long-term BLM resource management goals, a number of third-party partners have purchased threatened parcels to preserve them for future resale to the BLM, when appropriate.  The FY 2018 process is limited to 20 eligible projects from each State Office.  Submission information must not be released to external sources, as submission of the proposals at this time does not guarantee inclusion in the FY 2018 President’s Budget.

Manual/Handbook Sections Affected:  This IM transmits interim policy that will be incorporated into H-2100-1, Acquisitions, during the next revision.  This policy is intended to be inserted in Chapter 4, Section 4A.

Coordination:  Development of the BLM’s annual LWCF land acquisition funding request is managed by the Division of Lands, Realty and Cadastral Survey in the Directorate of Energy, Minerals, and Realty Management. This IM has been coordinated with the Resources and Planning Directorate and the National Landscape Conservation System and Community Partnerships Directorate, and the National LWCF Shared Services Team, which is comprised of representatives from the BLM Washington Office as well as the BLM California, Idaho, and Colorado state offices.

Contact:  If you have questions concerning the content of this IM, please contact me at 202-208-4201, or your staff may contact Kim Liebhauser, National LWCF Program Lead via email at kliebhau@blm.gov or by phone at 202-912-7349.

 

 

Signed by:                                                                   Authenticated by:

Michael Nedd                                                             Robert M. Williams

Assistant Director                                                       Division of IT Policy and Planning,WO-870

Energy, Minerals and Realty Management

 

 

6 Attachments

     1 – LWCF FY 2018 Submission Process (2 pp)

     2 – Project Data Sheet (Narrative)-Blank Format (1 p)

     3 – Fact Sheet (1 p)

     4 – Questionnaire (13 pp)

     5 – Instructions for Project Data Sheets (2 pp)

     6 – Instructions for Mapping Products (3 pp)