Welcome

Welcome to the home page of the National Association of State Outdoor Recreation Liaison Officers. NASORLO is an organization that represents the states and territories and is a liaison to the National Park Service in the administration of the Land and Water Conservation Fund in funding outdoor recreation at the state and local government level.  The LWCF is intended to create and maintain a nationwide legacy of high quality recreation areas and facilities and to stimulate non-federal investments in the protection and maintenance of recreation resources across the United States.  For information on the organizational history of NASORLO go to: https://www.nasorlo.org/the-organizational-history-of-nasorlo/

Our Mission: We are the primary advocate for the State Assistance program of the Land and Water Conservation Fund. We do this through providing information, training, collecting data and preparing reports for use by the Department of Interior, Congress, our members, partners and communities who benefit from this program.

Who We Are

We are the stewards of the Land and Water Conservation Fund in your state, the District of Columbia or US Territory.  NASORLO members are appointed by governors to manage the LWCF state and local grant program.  For more information about us go to our history.

Our Work

We guide the expenditure of LWCF investments through outdoor recreation grants assuring those funds result in the greatest outdoor recreation experiences in your community, state and territory.  We ensure that these outdoor recreation assets remain intact and forever available to the public for your use and enjoyment.  Our Mission is to ensure the LWCF grants, combined with the required matching dollars, are spent where people need outdoor recreation access and availability.

Advocacy

NASORLO is the primary advocate for, and the key organization representing all states and territories, that facilitated the permanent re-authorization of LWCF in 2019.  We supported and received an equitable distribution of 40% of the total LWCF  funds for state. territorial and local governments outdoor recreation projects in close to home locations.  Even though not every citizen can have easy access to a National Park but through LWCF state assistance our goal is to ensure every citizen convenient access to a  local or state park .

News & Events

Most recent information regarding news, upcoming events & conferences

LWCF Manager: West Virgina (Job Notice)

West Virginia is hiring for a LWCF Program Manager. This critical…

Upcoming NPS Administrative Grant Feedback Opportunities

NASORLO Members, I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. By…

Minnesota Position Available – Program Manager

See the following attachment for a Program Manager position within…

Thoughts & Comments

With permanent authorization and permanent and full funding of the Land and Water Conservation Program, accomplishments that have been sought and fought for since the inception of the program in 1965, the funding battle appears to have been won.  While these are major accomplishments to be celebrated, there are still challenges ahead.

We now are focused on improving the administration and efficiency of the program in many ways.  Our LWCF Modernization Committee has a robust list of proposed improvements to the program.  The Training Committee has a long list of topics to help those engaged in stateside delivery of LWCF.  Our Data Committee has a stable of states who could follow others in the use of data and technology to better reveal the legacy of LWCF, promote its significant impact and protect its investments for the future. The LWCF Manual Review Committee is eager to engage NPS in an ongoing effort to improve program guidance and a program is being implemented to create a network of local LWCF advocates to expand awareness and appreciation of LWCF.

We cannot accomplish these initiatives without a strong team effort and collaboration. We are increasingly relying on partners to join NASORLO to affect positive change in the program.  We value our collaborative relationships, but our most important relationship is with the National Parks Service on whom we rely for the efficient delivery of LWCF resources to state and local project sponsors. Many of the above initiatives can only be realized if we work together toward that common goal.  NASORLO leadership is committed to making this partnership work for both parties.

As the incoming President I am committed to doing what I can to facilitate these initiatives.  I hope you will join me as we strive to improve health outcomes, support economic development, mitigate the effects of climate change and so much more all through the acquisition and development of public outdoor recreation spaces via LWCF.

Doug Beck, SLO ME
President NASORLO 2020-21