Land acquisition funding

Funding for the Department of Natural Resources land acquisition programs comes from multiple sources. These include:

The Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program

This program was created for the purpose of acquiring land to protect Wisconsin's natural resources and expand recreational opportunities throughout the state.

Pittman-Robertson Federal Act [exit DNR]

This program is a federal excise tax on hunting equipment. The tax provides funding to states for the restoration and improvement of wildlife habitat. Federal funds are allocated each year based on the total revenue generated by the state of Wisconsin through the purchases of hunting equipment. Congress approved the act in 1937.

Sport Fish Restoration Act (formerly known as Dingell-Johnson Act) [exit DNR]

This is a federal excise tax on fishing equipment, motors, yachts and pleasure craft. The tax provides funding to states for fish restoration and management projects. Federal funds are allocated each year based on the total revenue generated by the state of Wisconsin.

Federal Land and Water Conservation Fund [exit DNR]

This program was established to create parks and open spaces, protect wilderness, wetlands, refuges, preserve wildlife habitat and enhance recreational opportunities. Funds are divided among the states using a formula based primarily on population.

Forest Legacy Program

The goal of this program is to identify and protect important forest areas and aid in conservation through the purchase of conservation easements. The secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture is authorized to make a grant to the state to carry out the Forest Legacy Program in Wisconsin, including the acquisition of land.

The North American Wetlands Conservation Act Grants Program [exit DNR]

This provides matching grants to private or public organizations or to individuals who have developed partnerships to carry out wetlands conservation projects in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The Act was passed, in part, to support activities under the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, an international agreement that provides a strategy for the long-term protection of wetlands and associated uplands needed by waterfowl and other migratory birds in North America.

Agricultural Land Easements (ALE) [exit DNR]

This program helps private and tribal landowners, land trusts, and other entities such as state and local governments protect croplands and grasslands on working farms and ranches by limiting non-agricultural uses of the land through conservation easements.