Can a Lame Duck Congress Get Anything Done?

Congress is back in town — but not the House and Senate members just elected at the polls last week. Welcome to the lame duck, when the 118th Congress has less than two months to get some work done before the 119th Congress gets sworn in on Jan. 3, 2025.

This period is an interesting time to be involved in legislative work. Outgoing members of Congress — who decided to retire or lost their elections — are looking to secure their legacy. Members who might take on leadership positions in the next session are weighing whether they have a stronger hand to play next year. Everything has shifted, yet the to-do list remains the same.

Can this lame duck get anything done before the clock runs out? NPCA believes it can — and must. Here are our top four priorities for the 118th Congress, before the final strike of the gavel takes the current legislators out of session.

1. Fund the national parks (and all of the federal government)

The current legislation funding the government, called a continuing resolution, runs out on Dec. 20. Congress needs to approve the next budget for parks, and the rest of the federal government, to function. National parks have been struggling for decades, operating with fewer staff and smaller budgets to sustain soaring park visitation and address the worsening effects of climate change. Congress has an obligation to adequately fund the national parks so that our public lands remain open, National Park Service staff are paid and our nation’s most treasured sites are protected.

2. Provide supplemental funding to help parks and communities recover from natural disasters

In the past few years, natural disasters have brought unprecedented damage to our National Park System. From coastal storm surges and hurricane winds to floodwaters and fires, our most special places have been subjected to increased degradation from extreme weather events. Most recently, Hurricane Helene caused untold destruction to communities and parks across the Southeast, including to the Blue Ridge Parkway. It’s up to Congress to make additional funding available so that these places can begin recovery as soon as possible. Our nation’s parks are a critical economic driver for some of the regions that have been most impacted. Ensuring that park infrastructure — such as roads, visitor centers and housing — are reopened is one of the many paths back to normalcy. None of that can happen without further investments from Congress.

3. Pass bills to expand, enhance and better protect our National Park System

NPCA is pushing to get crucial legislation passed into law so parks are better protected for future generations. Our top priority bills run the full gamut, from better protection of public lands through the Rim of the Valley Corridor Preservation Act to better community access and historical interpretation through the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument Access Act and the César E. Chávez and the Farmworker Movement National Historical Park Act. This critical mass of bills will have to pass as a group — often referred to as a package. Passing individual bills is difficult because there is so little time for the 118th Congress to get each bill to the floor of either the Senate or House. However, a package of public land bills could become law if it is attached to “must pass” bills, such as the National Defense Authorization Act or a supplemental funding bill.

4. Ensure the continued protection of Gates of the Arctic National Preserve

We are also working to make sure bad policy doesn’t slip through the cracks. One of the most egregious threats is a provision that would force through the proposed Ambler mining road in Northwest Alaska. This proposed road would cut through Gates of the Arctic National Preserve, including 3,000 rivers and streams and the migration path of the Western Arctic Caribou Herd.

Just this past June, the Biden Administration said no to the proposed road. But some members of Congress are trying to override the administration’s decision and the extensive public engagement process that led to it through legislation. We need Congress to ensure no bills are passed in this lame duck session that force the Ambler road project forward against the will of the people.

President Biden is a lame duck, too. And we have a to-do list for him

President Biden’s successor has already been chosen. But before President-elect Trump takes office, Biden has a couple more months to continue protecting and enhancing our national parks. At the top of NPCA’s list is the opportunity to establish new national monuments through the Antiquities Act. The president has two immediate Antiquities Act opportunities that would better tell America’s story.

Designating a Chuckwalla National Monument would protect the fragile desert ecosystem around Joshue Tree National Park in California. These protections would protect habitat for bighorn sheep and the Mojave desert tortoise, while also increasing community access to public lands. In Maine, Biden could turn the Frances Perkins Homestead into a national monument that would interpret the life and legacy of the first female U.S. Cabinet member. As Secretary of Labor under President Franklin Delano Roosevelt from 1933 to 1945, Perkins formulated policies and programs that bolstered the economy and helped working people across the country. The protections she secured for American workers are cornerstones of our society today, including Social Security, a minimum wage, unemployment insurance and a ban on child labor.

And there’s more

Aside from our top priorities, members of Congress have more to get done — and they need to do right by parks. Our watch list covers extending the Farm Bill, which includes funding for private landowners adjacent to parks; passing the Water Resources Development Act, which authorizes new water infrastructure improvement projects; and potentially reforming the permitting process for energy development. NPCA will be watching all these issues and more.

Congressional leadership will be mixing and matching different pieces of legislation. Some of this legislation may get its own vote, some may get combined. This could lead to some massive packages of bills at the end of the year — the political epitome of how the sausage gets made.

None of this precludes Congress from adding poison pills that may upend our advocacy efforts — that’s when we ask you to take action. Our Government Affairs team is knocking on doors as we build relationships on both sides of the aisle to build the case against poison pills, but we need your help, too.

You can take action on these conservation priorities:

• Funding
• Wildlife
• Great American Outdoors Act
• Cultural resources
• Climate
• Saying “no” to Ambler Road