New legislation has been introduced in Congress to stabilize funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund. The Fund was established in 1965 to provide a source of income for land acquisition and conservation projects. The Fund receives revenues generated from the extraction of oil and gas on the Outer Continental Shelf. Amendments in 1978 authorized expenditures of $900 million annually. However, Congress has not appropriated the full amount in recent years. Two pairs of bills (H.R. 798 / S. 466 and H.R. 701 / S. 25) now under consideration would establish a permanent allocation and remove the fund from annual budget discussions. Congressional leadership has stated that dedicated funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund is a priority for this session. Although they have the same basic goal, the rival bills differ in some important details.