WASHINGTON, DC - President Obama signed into law the bipartisan Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act introduced by U.S. Representatives Debbie Dingell (MI-12), Candice Miller (MI-10), and Darin LaHood (IL-18) to provide critical resources and funding to conserve and restore fish and wildlife in the Great Lakes.

The legislation was included as a provision of S. 612, the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) Act, and it reauthorizes the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act for the first time since 2006.

"Ducks Unlimited is pleased that the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act was reauthorized in WIIN, and we appreciate Reps. Dingell, Miller and LaHood's roles and all the bipartisan support the act garnered," said Gildo Tori, director of public policy for Ducks Unlimited's Great Lakes/Atlantic Region. "This act will ensure much-needed fish and wildlife habitat restoration will continue for the benefit of sportsmen and women, and all Great Lakes basin residents."

The Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act of 2016 authorizes the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to provide assistance to local groups for cooperative conservation, restoration, and management of fish and wildlife and their habitats. It also makes it easier for local groups to come up with matching funds, which means more conservation and restoration projects that improve water quality, protect species habitat, and improve access for outdoor recreation.

Since 1998, the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act has provided federal funding to 157 research and restoration projects in the Great Lakes Basin - from restoring habitat for the Kirtland Warbler, an endangered species, to detecting the successful reproduction of Lake Trout in southern Michigan.

Read the full release