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Ask Your Congressperson to Join the National Wildlife Refuge Caucus
Please send a letter to your Representative asking them to join the caucus
As a supporter of our country's national wildlife refuges, you may be aware of the acute crisis facing our National Wildlife Refuge System. Inadequate funding has left some of our nation's most pristine wild places at risk, and most refuges cannot meet their basic needs and resources. In the northeast alone, almost a dozen refuges face imminent closure due to insufficient funding.
In Congress, however, longtime refuge supporters Ron Kind (D-WI) and Jim Saxton (R-NJ), along with Michael Castle (R-DE) and Mike Thompson (D-CA), are leading a charge to reinvigorate the Refuge System by launching the first-ever Wildlife Refuge Congressional Caucus. The target kickoff date for the caucus is September 14, but we need members to join now. Please e-mail your representative today and urge him or her to join the new Refuge Caucus.
| Sample Letter for Campaign |
Subject: Please support the Congressional Wildlife Refuge Caucus
Dear [ Decision Maker ] ,
I write today to urge you to join the Wildlife Refuge Caucus chaired by Representatives Ron Kind and Jim Saxton.
Due to a lack of funding, our National Wildlife Refuge System has found itself facing an imminent crisis. In the northeast alone, nearly a dozen refuges will be closed in the next year as a result of inadequate funding. The National Wildlife Refuge System is a world-class complex of public lands that must be protected by our elected officials.
Please support the National Wildlife Refuge System by joining the Wildlife Refuge Caucus today.
Sincerely,
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Campaign Launched:
July 18, 2006
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Support the Congressional Wildlife Refuge Caucus
Since 1903, when President Theodore Roosevelt established Pelican Island in Florida as our nation's first wildlife refuge, the National Wildlife Refuge System?s network has grown to include 545 refuges. Every state has a national wildlife refuge and there is a refuge within an hour's drive of almost every major U.S. city. National wildlife refuges are the only federal public lands created primarily for the protection of wildlife and they enjoy the diverse public support of conservation groups, sportsmen's groups, and schools and families that use them as living classrooms.
But despite the Refuge System's inherent value, it has not managed to escape the severe budget cuts that plague our nation's public lands. Due to an increase in fixed costs and inflation, our refuges need an additional $16 million every year just to be level funded. The Refuge System's budget allocation, however, has decreased since 2004.
Support of the Wildlife Refuge Caucus is one of many ways we can make National Wildlife Refuges a priority for our elected officials. The new Refuge Caucus will create a bipartisan voice for refuges in Congress, support adequate Refuge System budgets, and engender strategic growth in our Refuge System for generations of future Americans to enjoy.
Take Action Today
We need your help to ensure that the Wildlife Refuge Caucus is a success. The more members our new Wildlife Refuge Caucus has from both sides of the aisle, the more influential it will be. Please e-mail your U.S. Representative and urge him or her to support our National Wildlife Refuge System by joining the Caucus.
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