Bipartisan event with President McCarthy, 55+ members of Congress
Ducks Unlimited (DU) Hosted the Annual Capitol Hill Dinner and Auction in Washington, D.C. Attended by More Than 650 Total Guests, Including Biden Administration Officials, Congressional Staff, DU Leaders, and More Than 55 Bipartisan Members of Congress, wetland conservation was once again the focus of government leaders across the United States.
The dinner was opened by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (CA), and Rep. Lisa Blunt-Rochester (DE) led the invocation.
“It’s a pleasure to gather in our nation’s capital to celebrate wetland conservation with our friends in Congress,” said DU Executive Director Adam Putnam. “The tireless work of our volunteers across the country is what allows DU to have such a strong reputation in Washington, and this event is a testament to that hard work. It is also proof of the broad bipartisan support for the American model of wildlife conservation in Congress, and DU will continue to work with our partners in government, conservation, and industry to ensure that our nation’s investment in our natural places stay strong.”
Emblematic of DU’s bipartisan support in Congress, the North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA), one of DU’s highest priority conservation programs, received record funding of $50 million last year. And support for programs like NAWCA remains high. In 2023, more than 165 representatives and 52 senators have already voiced their support for NAWCA funding to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees.
NAWCA is a voluntary matching grant program that leverages federal and non-federal funds for wetland restoration. Since its enactment in 1989, the NAWCA has conserved more than 30 million acres and created an average of 7,500 new jobs per year. Every dollar spent by the federal government, on average, receives a $3 match from program partners like Ducks Unlimited. Further demonstrating the effectiveness of investments made by wetland programs like NAWCA, the recent State of the Birds report revealed widespread bird losses in all habitats except wetlands.
DU hosts the annual Capitol Hill Dinner and Auction each spring in our nation’s capital, welcoming members of Congress from both sides of the aisle and leaders of the current presidential administration, including those from the White House, Department of of Agriculture and the US Department of the Interior.
For more information, visit www.ducks.org and be sure to follow DU’s Twitter feed, @DucksUnlimited, for the latest Ducks Unlimited news.
Ducks Unlimited Inc. is the world’s largest nonprofit organization dedicated to conserving North America’s continually disappearing waterfowl habitats. Established in 1937, Ducks Unlimited has conserved more than 15 million acres thanks to the contributions of more than one million supporters across the continent. Guided by science and dedicated to program efficiency, DU works toward the vision of enough wetlands to fill the skies with waterfowl today, tomorrow, and forever. To learn more about our work, visit www.ducks.org.