Land and Water Conservation Fund Water Amendments Act of 2025

This bill amends title 54 of the United States Code to allow the Secretary of the Interior to use Land and Water Conservation Fund financial assistance to states for water quality projects, in addition to outdoor recreation.

Sec. 2, Financial assistance to states for water quality projects: This section amends existing law to add water quality improvement as a purpose for financial assistance. It requires statewide outdoor recreation plans to identify impaired water bodies under the Clean Water Act and any proposed water quality projects for them. It defines a water quality project as one restoring a water body identified as impaired by the state. The Secretary may provide financial assistance for such projects, credit state funds toward the non-federal share, and must consult with the EPA Administrator. Assistance is limited to projects improving water quality through natural hydrological systems like wetlands, marshes, living shorelines, near-shore estuarine waters, or other features to reduce nutrient loads. Funds cannot reimburse completed or fully funded projects, and the section does not expand federal authority over nonnavigable waters or authorize regulation of water quality projects.