	Introduction

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) was chartered by Congress in 1984. Although many of NFWF's projects involve work with federal agencies, under the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 501(c)(3), it is a "charitable and nonprofit corporation and is not an agency or establishment of the United States." This broad mission is specified in the purposes of the foundation: 
(1) to encourage, accept, and administer private gifts of property for the benefit of, or in connection with, the activities and services of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, to further the conservation and management of fish, wildlife, plants, and other natural resources;
(2) to undertake and conduct such other activities as will further the conservation and management of the fish, wildlife, and plant resources of the United States, and its territories and possessions, for present and future generations of Americans; and
(3) to participate with, and otherwise assist, foreign governments, entities, and individuals in undertaking and conducting activities that will further the conservation and management of the fish, wildlife, and plant resources of other countries. In addition to FWS, two other federal land agencies have associated foundations. The fourth federal land management agency, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM, in DOI) has no associated foundation. NFWF Projects and Partners: Recent Examples

The range of projects sponsored by NFWF is broad. As these examples illustrate, some grants have no direct federal funding involvement, although federal lands may benefit from NFWF projects. NFWF also may receive funds that are settlements or penalties resulting from lawsuits that find damage to fish and wildlife resources. The remaining two purposes are not tied to these agencies or to any other federal agency. Congress may consider legislation to create additional foundations for other agencies. NFWF and the other two existing foundations offer three different models for such an effort.
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) was chartered by Congress in 1984 to aid in the conservation of plants, animals, and ecosystems; many of its projects involve work with federal agencies. By statute, NFWF is a "charitable and nonprofit corporation and is not an agency or establishment of the United States." Registered under the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 501(c)(3), NFWF is not a part of the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS, Department of the Interior), though it does have certain links to that agency, as well as to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
NFWF offers opportunities to individuals and corporations to make tax-deductible contributions to promote plant, animal, and ecosystem conservation in peer-reviewed projects. It also allows federal agencies to seek partners who wish to aid in such projects, and it sometimes serves as a conduit for the management of fines or funds resulting from court settlements to mitigate damage to fish and wildlife. NFWF projects may benefit conservation on federal lands, but other ownerships also may receive benefits. NFWF differs from such other federal foundations as the National Park Foundation and the National Forest Foundation in having much more tenuous links to federal agencies; many NFWF projects have no link to any federal agency.
If Congress considers legislation to create additional foundations associated with the missions of other federal land agencies, such as the Bureau of Land Management (BLM)—or for other purposes, such as Indian education—NFWF and the two foundations noted above offer three different models for such an effort.