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Louisiana Outdoors Forever

Program Overview

During the 2022 legislative session, the Louisiana House of Representatives and Louisiana Senate passed House Bill 762, establishing the Louisiana Outdoors Forever Program and Louisiana Outdoors Forever Fund. The purpose of this program is to provide funding for outdoor conservation projects in the State of Louisiana. The fund for the Louisiana Outdoors Forever Program is established within the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. House Bill 406 passed through the 2022 legislative session, which provided $10 million in funding for the program’s first year.

November 6, 2023 – The Project Selection Board with input and evaluation from the Technical Advisory Board, selected thirteen projects for funding, awarding $10 million in funding and leveraging an additional $27.9 million in matching funds from other public and private sources bringing the first year total to $37.9 million.

The types of projects which may be eligible for funding are land conservation of important natural areas, including fish and wildlife habitat; Water quality projects related to land conservation or land management, including those lands that protect drinking water supplies; Working land, farms, and forested land; Recreational properties related to important natural areas and public use; Historic properties adjacent to or integral to habitat restoration or enhancement. To learn more about the program and funding, please see the Program Manual.

Funding Cycle Announcement

During the 2024 legislative session, an additional $1 million in funding was provided to Louisiana Outdoors Forever. The Project Selection Board and Technical Advisory Board will meet on April 17, 2025, at 10:00 AM to discuss the current status of projects from the 2023 – 2024 Funding Cycle and determine a path forward to another funding cycle.  

Videos

Introduction to the Pre-Application Process


Louisiana Outdoors Forever Boards

The Louisiana Outdoors Forever Program is governed by a Project Selection Board. The Project Selection Board makes all final determinations regarding the selection of projects for funding under the program. The Project Selection Board is advised by a Technical Advisory Board. The Technical Advisory Board reviews and evaluates applications in accordance with the program criteria and scoring and forwards assessments to the Project Selection Board.

Project Selection Board

Andree T. Miller -Deputy Chief of Staff

 

Brandon Burris -
Assistant Secretary, Office of State Parks

Brandon Burris is the Assistant Secretary for the Office of State Parks within the department of Culture, Recreation, and Tourism. Mr. Burris serves as a direct appointment for Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser. Mr. Burris is responsible for the oversight of Louisiana’s vast State Parks system and numerous State Historic Sites. Prior to his appointment as Assistant Secretary, Mr. Burris served as Deputy Assistant Secretary within the Office of State Parks. 

Mr. Burris has also served as Executive Management Officer for the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and as Deputy Director of Community Programs within the Office the Governor of Louisiana.

Assistant Secretary Burris is a graduate of Louisiana Tech University and a native of Monroe, La.

Joey Breaux -
Assistant Commissioner Soil & Water Conservation at Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry

Mr. Breaux began work with the LDAF / Office of Soil & Water Conservation in January 1994 as a Soil Scientist and Coastal Revegetation Project Manager working with coastal Soil & Water Conservation Districts. In 1996 he began administering the statewide Soil & Water Conservation District Program and overseeing the Coastal Vegetative Planting program, the Agriculture Solid Waste Management Program, Agricultural Nonpoint Source Management Program, Agricultural and Marshland Prescribed Burning Program, Louisiana Master Farmer Certifications and served 23 years as the State Coordinator for the Louisiana Project WET (Water Education for Teachers) Program. He became the LDAF/OSWC Assistant Commissioner and SWCC Executive Director in July 2020.    

 Breaux was born in Creole, LA, was raised in southwest LA’s rice, cattle and crawfish production region and graduated from Bell City High School and McNeese State University (B.S. Dept. of Agriculture – Wildlife Management) 

Aurelia Giacometto
Secretary at Department of Environmental Quality 

 

Charles Reulet -
Administrator - Interagency Affairs and Field Services with Office of Coastal Management
Charles Reulet is a Coastal Resources Administrator for the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources Office of Coastal Management. He leads a team that strives to conserve, protect, manage and enhance the coastal resources of the state while encouraging multiple sustainable uses of those resources and ensuring no net loss of wetlands.  He has had multiple roles working for the Louisiana Coastal Resources Program, throughout his professional civil service career. Charles holds a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Management Systems with a focus on Resource Conservation from Louisiana State University. As a life-long resident and outdoor enthusiast he along with his family, wife, and two daughters enjoys the resources of the state just as much as protecting them. Bryan McClinton -
Chairman of LA Outdoors Forever Project Selection Board, Undersecretary at Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries
Bryan McClinton is the Undersecretary at Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries. He oversees the Office of Management and Finance, which is responsible for fiscal and human resource management, licensing, procurement and general administrative services. Bryan is from Livonia, Louisiana and holds a B.S. in Finance from Louisiana State University, and Master degrees in Business Administration and Pastoral Studies from Loyola University in New Orleans. Bryan served on the Outdoor Conservation Study Group enacted by the 2021 Legislative Session. He was elected Chairman of the Louisiana Outdoors Forever Project Selection board at their first meeting on August 26, 2022.
Honorable Jerome "Zee" Zeringue - 
Louisiana State Representative
Representative Jerome “Zee” Zeringue was elected in 2015 and represents Lafourche and Terrebonne parishes in the House of Representatives. Rep. Zeringue holds a Bachelor of Science in Zoology from Louisiana State University and a Master of Science in Fisheries Science from Tulane University. Rep. Zeringue introduced House Bill 762 creating the Louisiana Outdoors Forever Program which passed overwhelmingly in both chambers of the 2022 Legislative session. Honorable Bob Hensgens -
Louisiana State Senator
 
Brian Lezina - 
Administrator, Planning and Research at Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority
Brian Lezina is the Administrator of Planning and Research at Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority of Louisiana (CPRA). Lezina possess a Bachelor of Science in Wildlife and Fisheries Science from Louisiana State University and a Master of Science in Coastal Sciences from The University of Southern Mississippi.    

Technical Advisory  Board

Stephen P. Swiber -
Chief Resilience Officer, Office of the Governor
  Cheston Hill - 
Public Lands Administrator, Office of State Lands
Cheston Hill serves as head of the Louisiana Office of State Lands in the Division of Administration.  A graduate of Louisiana State University with a degree in Geography, he has a background in professional land services in the upstream oil and gas industry, focusing on record title abstracting, title examination and mineral history research.  He joined the State Land Office in 2016 as Manager of Titles & Surveys, and was selected for the position of Public Lands Administrator in 2020.  An avid outdoorsman, he enjoys fishing in freshwater and saltwater, as well as hunting, motorcycle riding, playing chess and spending time with family and friends. 
Taylor Theriot -
Executive Staff Officer, Office of Louisiana State Parks

Taylor Theriot serves as the executive staff officer for the Office of State Parks within the Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism. Mrs. Theriot is responsible for assisting in policy implementation for programs under the discretion of the assistant secretary.

Taylor is a graduate of Louisiana State University’s Manship School of Mass Communication and a native of New Orleans, La.

Theron Phillips -
Agri. Enviro. Spec. Admin. Coordinator at Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry
Theron Phillips has served the public through the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry’s Office of Soil and Water Conservation for the past 25 years. He manages a variety of conservation programs such as the Coastal Vegetative Planting Program, Louisiana’s Pilot Feral Swine Eradication Program, Agriculture Solid Waste Management Program, and Louisiana Master Farmer Certifications in his capacity as Agricultural Environmental Specialist Administrative Coordinator. In 1998, Theron earned his Bachelor of Science degree from what is now known as the University of Louisiana-Monroe. His career in public service started with LDAF in South Louisiana as the Coastal Vegetative Program’s Project Manager where he assisted Soil and Water Conservation Districts implementing and monitoring of vegetative plantings within the state’s Coastal Zone. In 2005, Theron relocated to North Louisiana where he facilitated Soil and Water Conservation District/EPA 319 Nonpoint Source Management projects consisting of voluntary participation by agricultural producers and landowners. He conducted resource inventories, conservation planning, contracting, engineering surveying, and design for conservation practice implementation on private farmland until 2019. Throughout his career, Theron has considered himself fortunate to have the privilege of helping the state’s agriculture community solve problems by finding conservation solutions that decrease erosion and nutrient load reductions to improve the environment and promote prosperity for Louisianians.
Wes LeBlanc -
Coastal Resource Scientist Manager
  Sara Krupa - 
Coastal Resource Science Manager - Interagency Affairs with Office of Coastal Management
Sara Krupa has been with the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources since 2009, and has served as a Coastal Resource Manager in the Office of Coastal Management since 2018.  Krupa oversees the Interagency Affairs Section which is responsible for contract and grants management, federal and local permitting, and emergency response activities.  Krupa also serves on the Advisory Board for Keep Louisiana Beautiful and on the Board of Directors for the Louisiana Environmental Health Association. Krupa has previously served as a project manager for the Atchafalaya Basin Program and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality. Krupa, from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, holds a B.S. in Biochemistry with a focus on Chemistry. 
G. Scott Longman -
Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Wildlife
Scott Longman is the Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of Wildlife within the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF).  He oversees the budget, human resources, policy and general administrative functions for the Office of Wildlife.  He has held several roles throughout LDWF in his thirty-two years of service to the conservation agency.  Scott is a native of Eunice, Louisiana and holds a B.S. in Wildlife Management from McNeese State University. Jeffrey Leonick -
Environmental Scientist at the Department of Environmental Quality
 

 

 

Upcoming Meetings

Board meetings are open to the public. A live audio/video stream of each meeting is also available via Zoom for those who are not able to attend in person.

Project Selection Board

Next Meeting Date:
PSB  Meeting
April 17, 2025 at 9:00 AM
LDWF Headquarters
Joe Herring Room
2000 Quail Drive
Baton Rouge, LA 70808

Technical Advisory Board

Next Meeting Date:
TAB Meeting
April 17, 2025 at 9:00 AM
LDWF Headquarters
Joe Herring Room
2000 Quail Drive
Baton Rouge, LA 70808

 


contact
For more info, contact us at LAOutdoorsForever@la.gov