Last month, Governor Gavin Newsom signed the 2022-2023 budget bill allocating substantial resources to important state initiatives such as 30×30 Pathways and Natural and Working Lands Climate Smart Strategies. We applaud the Newsom administration and legislative leaders for providing more than $1.6 billion to accelerate 30×30 projects throughout California.

There are some shortcomings with the budget language as it fails to detail exactly how the funds will be distributed. We do know that funds will be made available via grant funding to local agencies and nonprofits.

General highlights:

• $1.53B across multiple agencies and departments for 30×30 and nature-based solutions for efforts focusing on land acquisition and habitat restoration
• $71M for planning, science, and capacity building
• $118M for wildlife corridors
• $661M for climate-smart lands, some of which will likely be spent on actions that qualify as 30×30
• $763M for drought and water resilience
• $582M for park and equitable access
• $70M for Tribal nature-based solutions programs
• $485M for fire management and ecosystem resilience
• $577M for community resilience and extreme heat

Sierra Nevada allocations:

• $26M to the Sierra Nevada Conservancy
• $23M to the Tahoe Conservancy
• $95M to the California Wildlife Conservation Board for the Cascades and High Sierra Upper Watersheds Program

This funding will significantly impact the Sierra Nevada region by funding projects that promote forest and landscape health, watershed protection, and community safety. Land trusts and organizations throughout our region will likely benefit from significant funding set aside for land acquisition and habitat restoration.