LASSO Act

The LASSO Act would require that 10 percent of all revenue generated from public lands managed by the Department of the Interior and the Forest Service be deposited into the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund. This trust fund is the primary source of funding for Social Security benefits paid to retirees, their families, and survivors of deceased workers. The bill would use revenue from various public land activities, including resources from submerged lands on the Outer Continental Shelf, to help shore up Social Security finances.

If enacted, this bill would create a new dedicated revenue stream for Social Security by tapping into income generated from federal public lands. This could potentially help address long-term funding challenges facing the Social Security program, though the actual impact would depend on the total amount of public lands revenue generated each year. The bill is currently in the early stages of the legislative process and has not yet advanced out of subcommittee hearings.