WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Senate began debating this week on bipartisan legislation to modernize the nation’s energy infrastructure, the first such attempt at a major legislative overhaul since 2007.

The bill, known as the Energy Policy Modernization Act of 2015, contains several provisions based on legislation proposed by Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., including one that would permanently reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

“Conserving our open space is an important priority for Colorado that helps create jobs, grow our economy and protect our environment and quality of life,” Bennet said in a statement. “Rural and urban communities throughout our state benefit from the Land and Water Conservation Fund and have joined our fight to permanently authorize this important fund.”

The popular land conservation program established in 1964 was allowed to expire at the end of September. Efforts by some congressional leaders to reform the fund – the country’s most successful land conservation program – were unsuccessful. Congress reauthorized the program for three years as part of the federal spending bill that passed in December.

According to Bennet’s office, the LWCF’s 2016 funding includes almost $20 million for land conservation projects across Colorado.

But Bennet and others in Congress, including Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., have called for the fund to be permanently reauthorized. Last year, Bennet introduced a bipartisan bill along with Sens. Richard Burr, R-N.C., and Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., to permanently reauthorize the fund. That effort was unsuccessful.

Philip Clelland, a spokesman for Bennet, said the senator is pushing for permanent reauthorization because of the fund’s ability to conserve accessible and open public areas for long-term use.

“Public lands in Colorado are a huge component of Colorado’s $34.5 billion outdoor recreation industry that supports hundreds of thousands of jobs throughout the state,” Clelland said. “More than that, Colorado families for generations have been hiking, camping, mountain biking and fishing on these lands. It’s part of our state’s heritage. Permanently authorizing LWCF gives Colorado communities – rural and urban alike – certainty that this funding will be there to help provide resources to preserve these open spaces.”

The Senate energy bill is co-sponsored by Republican Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, chairwoman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and Democrat Maria Cantwell of Washington, the committee’s ranking member.

The legislation, which states that it would “provide for the modernization of the energy policy of the United States,” primarily focuses on improving domestic energy efficiency and infrastructure.

The Senate is continuing to debate and vote on a number of proposed amendments to the bill, including one that would provide up to $400 million in federal aid for Flint, Michigan, to address its ongoing water crisis.

egraham@durangoherald.com. Edward Graham is a student at American University in Washington, D.C., and an intern for The Durango Herald.