In May, 2003, Frelinghuysen introduced H.R. 1964, the Highlands Conservation Act, a bill that recognized "the importance of the water, forest, agricultural, wildlife, recreational, and cultural resources of the Highlands region, and the national significance of the Highlands region to the United States", and authorized up to $10 million a year in federal matching funds for land preservation and protection in the Highlands states (Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut), as well as $1 million a year for United States Forest Service research and technical assistance programs. In November, 2004, George W. Bush signed the Highlands Conservation Act into law. In 2014, Congress failed to re-authorize the Act and the program expired.