While we are disappointed that the Charitable Conservation Easement Program Integrity Act did not pass this Congress, our efforts to enact this important legislation will continue in the new year.

With the introduction of an updated version of the Charitable Conservation Easement Program Integrity Act in the U.S. House of Representatives, we are one step closer to halting the abuse of conservation easement donations.

On the heels of Congress passing the Land and Water Conservation Fund, the conservation community has achieved another legislative victory with enactment of the America's Conservation Enhancement Act.

Abuse of the conservation easement tax incentive has ballooned in recent years from $6 billion in illicit claimed deductions in 2016, to $6.8 billion in 2017 to $9.2 billion in 2018 — for a total of $36 billion since 2010.

The Land Trust Alliance and our 1,000 member land trusts welcome the U.S. Senate Finance Committee's thorough and revealing report today on abuse of the federal conservation tax incentive.

And with the stroke of a pen, it became official: The Land and Water Conservation Fund now has full and dedicated funding. That means that $900 million will be committed each year to protecting important land, water and recreation areas that benefit all Americans.

While the history books may best remember 2020 as the year of a global pandemic, it also could well be remembered for the realization of a 50-year-old dream across the conservation community: securing full and dedicated funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund.