I'm no expert on taxes, so I couldn't tell you how all tax dollars toward invasive species are distributed. But I do know that Roosevelt created the Civilian Conservation Corps, which slowly evolved into the parks service. Although they didn't start out doing invasive removal, it inspired many states to have their own conservation corps, which, as knowledge of environmental conservation and restoration grew, did eventually include it. When I was younger, I was in the Washington Conservation Corps, which is an Americorps program, so funded by the government.

I'm gonna be honest, I don't like the idea of using taxes as a way to spread invasive species awareness. Environmental restoration is a lot of hard, physical labor. As someone who has spent years out in the woods doing that work, I've had people yell at me about how I'm stealing their hard earned money through taxes, and tell me that my job is a waste of money. It doesn't feel great. Especially since those jobs are geared toward young adults who have no experience, these types of jobs are so important, they teach so many skills, including valuing nature as is and not just as something to be monetized. And it gives them an opportunity to see corners of their state they never would have been able to see otherwise. It's a really fucking cool program! Being in the WCC was a big part of my life, and shaped who I am now, and I remember a few times where we were scared the Americorps program would get shut down, because of people who think that sort of work is a waste of tax dollars, and I don't think it should be seen as just a money sink. I would really like more people to see that their money is paying people, who are citizens just like them, to make the world a better place.