LEGISLATIVE HIGHLIGHTS

Scoop Jackson was an elected member of the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate for more than 40 years. During that time, he sponsored or co-sponsored hundreds of pieces of legislation, some of which moved the nation in new directions, especially in the areas of the environment and human rights.

You can find detailed information on the legislation highlighted below and a complete legislative history at the UW Libraries Special Collections: Senator Jackson Legislative Record.

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Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act
This act more than doubled the size of the National Park System by adding more than 47 million acres, and converted most of the national monuments in Alaska into National Parks and Preserves.

Alpine Lakes Wilderness
This act established a vast wilderness that sits astride the Cascade crest.

Federal Lands for Parks and Recreation Act
This act made surplus federal land in urban areas available for purchase as park land at little or no cost to local authorities.

Federal Land Policy and Management Act
This act made the Bureau of Land Management a permanent entity within the federal government, and established and formalized policies for the use of large areas of public land in the U.S., especially in western states.

Jackson-Vanik Amendment
The Jackson-Vanik Amendment to the Trade Reform Act of 1974 offered Most Favored Nation Status (MFN) for economic trade and official credits to the Soviet Union and other non-market economy countries, but only if they respected the right to emigrate. Although the language was broadly inclusive, the Amendment aimed to help Jews, non-Orthodox Christians and other ethnic and religious minorities in the USSR, whom the Soviet government prevented from emigrating.

Land and Water Conservation Fund Act
This act regulated admission and special recreation user fees at certain recreational areas, and established a fund to subsidize state and federal acquisition of lands and waters for recreational and conservation purposes.

National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
This act established a national environmental policy, created the Council on Environmental Quality and required the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement assessing potential impacts to the environment before any major federal project or action was approved.

National Trail System Act and the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act
This act provided for the protection and preservation in free-flowing condition of selected rivers that possessed outstanding scenic, recreational, geologic, fish and wildlife, historic or cultural value.

Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978
The Natural Gas Policy Act (NGPA) granted the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) authority over intrastate, as well as interstate, natural gas production.

North Cascades National Park
This act created the North Cascades National Park Service Complex, comprised of 684,000 acres of undeveloped land.

Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act Amendment
This act set up a framework for oil and natural gas leasing, exploration, and development activities on the outer continental shelf of the U.S.

Redwoods National Park
This act created the Redwoods National Park, protecting 58,000 acres of old-growth coastal redwoods, some of the world’s tallest trees.

Surface Mining and Reclamation Act
This act regulated surface coal mining operations and required that adverse impacts on fish, wildlife and the environment be minimized.

Wilderness Act
This act protected 9.1 million acres of wilderness in national forests for the benefit of present and future generations.

Youth Conservation Corps Act
This act authorized a program employing young adults to work 90 days a year on federal parks and lands, to enhance natural resources and appreciation for the environment.

Photo at top of page:

Senator Jackson and Senator Magnuson with President Johnson standing in front of Grand Coulee Dam map

University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections, UW26131