Outdoor Recreation Roundtable’s Post

A Milestone for Outdoor Recreation in Arkansas Exciting news for Arkansas and rural America! The recent reauthorization of the U.S. Economic Development Administration opens new opportunities for outdoor recreation investments, directly benefiting communities like ours in The Natural State. For Bentonville and Arkansas, this means more resources to enhance trails, parks, and other recreation infrastructure—key elements of what makes our region special. Outdoor recreation isn’t just about adventure; it’s about boosting local economies, creating sustainable jobs, and improving the quality of life for residents. As a state that celebrates the outdoors, this funding aligns perfectly with Arkansas’ identity and our vision for a vibrant, thriving community. We’re excited to see how this will shape the future of Bentonville and beyond. Visit Bentonville sees value in the outdoor economy. #VisitBentonville #TheNaturalState #OutdoorRecreation #EconomicGrowth

The House and Senate's passage of the Thomas R. Carper Water Resources Development Act of 2024 "acknowledges the significance of outdoor recreation as an economic driver for rural communities for the first time and explicitly authorizes outdoor recreation projects as an eligible use of EDA funding." #OutdoorRecreationEconomy #QualityOfLife #GetOutside

Academic Thoughts on the EXPLORE Act The passage of the Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences (EXPLORE) Act is a monumental win for outdoor enthusiasts, public land managers, and the recreation industry. Unanimously approved by the Senate, this bipartisan legislation marks a turning point in how we manage and invest in outdoor recreation. For decades, funding for recreation on public lands has lagged behind booming demand. Agencies like the National Park Service and Bureau of Land Management have faced stagnant budgets, even as visitation has soared—325 million visits to National Parks in 2023 alone! The EXPLORE Act addresses these challenges with forward-thinking solutions: Fostering Partnerships: The Act empowers federal agencies to collaborate with state governments, municipalities, universities, and private industry to manage and develop recreation infrastructure. Market-Based Solutions: It opens the door for private investment in unique outdoor experiences, reducing reliance on taxpayer funding. Adapting to Modern Needs: By aligning public land management with today’s economic realities, it sets the stage for innovation and sustainability. While it doesn’t resolve all funding issues, the EXPLORE Act lays the foundation for a future where outdoor recreation is accessible, sustainable, and well-supported. Check out the full post here:

U.S. House Passes SEMA-Supported EXPLORE Act to Boost Outdoor Recreation Economy 📈 🚀 The U.S. House of Representatives passed the SEMA-supported "Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences Act" (EXPLORE Act), H.R. 6492, by a voice vote. The EXPLORE Act, which has a broad range of support from more than 30 organizations, now advances to the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources (ENR) Committee. The strongly bipartisan legislation is sponsored by Natural Resources Chairman Bruce Westerman (R-AR), who drafted the bill in coordination with Ranking Member Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ). The EXPLORE Act expands on S. 873, the "America's Outdoor Recreation Act of 2023" (AORA), and includes key, SEMA-supported provisions from the bill. The Senate ENR Committee passed S. 873 in 2023. "SEMA thanks Chairman Westerman and Ranking Member Grijalva for their continued advocacy for the EXPLORE Act, which was critical in getting the House to pass the bill with such strong bipartisan support," said Mike Spagnola, SEMA president and CEO. "The EXPLORE Act is critical to the motorized recreation community. The bill would streamline the process and expenses associated with obtaining special recreation permits, require federal land management agencies to increase opportunities for motorized and non-motorized access on public lands, and direct the BLM and Forest Service to make maps available to the public depicting where vehicles are allowed to recreate." 🔗 https://brnw.ch/21wIUg6

Today the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable (ORR) released a new report, "Recreation Funding in America: Current Results and Future Insights.” This first-of-its-kind comprehensive study conducted by Southwick Associates, Inc. on behalf of ORR aggregates and analyzes current federal funding streams for outdoor recreation and identifies potential future threats to these funding sources including changing energy demands, evolving participation, inflation, weather events and climate change, and stagnant appropriations trends. Stand-out stat: Outdoor recreation contributes 2.2% to U.S. GDP, yet only receives 0.16% of federal funding, a nearly 14x difference in scale. The report highlights the pressing need for innovative solutions to ensure sustainable funding for the $1.1 trillion recreation economy and the millions of Americans and communities who rely on it in the face of these potential funding gaps. https://lnkd.in/gRjG5cMy

Time to increase our focus on the community & economic needs of our smaller, more rural communities and quite often, outdoor recreation projects and placemaking projects are economic development for small towns in Michigan. https://lnkd.in/e8fvFSA6

Today the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable (ORR) released a new report, "Recreation Funding in America: Current Results and Future Insights.” This first-of-its-kind comprehensive study conducted by Southwick Associates, Inc. on behalf of ORR aggregates and analyzes current federal funding streams for outdoor recreation and identifies potential future threats to these funding sources including changing energy demands, evolving participation, inflation, weather events and climate change, and stagnant appropriations trends. Stand-out stat: Outdoor recreation contributes 2.2% to U.S. GDP, yet only receives 0.16% of federal funding, a nearly 14x difference in scale. The report highlights the pressing need for innovative solutions to ensure sustainable funding for the $1.1 trillion recreation economy and the millions of Americans and communities who rely on it in the face of these potential funding gaps. https://lnkd.in/gg9tHiQa

Americans love to enjoy the great outdoors, but there isn't always enough of it to go around. It's critical that Congress allocate the resources to ensure we have access to public lands! Kudos to the team over at the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable for continuing to move the EXPLORE Act forward. The Recreation Package (America’s Outdoor Recreation Act in the Senate and Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences Act in the House) is a first-of-its-kind, comprehensive legislative package that combines several bipartisan and bicameral bills the outdoor recreation industry has long supported including the Simplifying Outdoor Access for Recreation (SOAR) Act, the Outdoor Recreation Act, the Recreation Not Red Tape Act, and other pragmatic pieces of outdoor recreation legislation. These bills serve as reminders of how the outdoors brings people together from both sides of the aisle. This commonsense legislation would appropriately meet the growing demand for access to the outdoors while also protecting public lands and waters for future use by improving experiences and access for all, advancing conservation efforts, mitigating the impacts of increasing visitation, and continuing to grow the outdoor recreation economy. This transformative legislation would be a win-win for businesses, conservation, and Democrats and Republicans alike, while supporting rural economies, communities, and our American quality of life. If you'd like to learn more, then click on through.... https://lnkd.in/esuCqUYz And a big thanks goes out to House Committee on Natural Resources Chairman U.S. Representative Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) and Ranking Member U.S. Representative Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.) for leading the charge on this critical legislation. #EXPLORE #EXPLOREAct #Outdoors #Recreation #ORR #Powersports #Marine #RV #SOAR #Bipartisan #GreatOutdoors

New policy recommendations for developing recreation economies: today, the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Department of the Interior, and USDA released a groundbreaking inter-agency report providing recommendations for regional economic development through outdoor recreation in the United States. These recommendations are a testament to the central role of the $1.1 trillion outdoor recreation economy in communities across the country and are an outcome of President Biden’s executive order in April 2022 that directed the Secretaries of these departments to collaborate on this report. The report recommends: – Continuing to work with communities to identify and address barriers to growth through the Federal Interagency Council on Outdoor Recreation (FICOR) and other initiatives. – Implementing provisions of the MAPLand Act and 2023 Consolidated Appropriations Act to inventory assets and improve public access to Federal lands. – Utilizing available authorities to support the maintenance and adaptation of recreation facilities through long-term planning that incorporates evaluations of climate risk and corresponding adaptation strategies. – Reauthorizing the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act and the Great American Outdoors Act. – Coordinating across the Federal Government to utilize programs like the Recreation Economy for Rural Communities Program to support economic development for underserved communities and resilient infrastructure. – Investing in collection and management of data on recreation, in consultation with communities and the public, to help inform agency and community understanding of current demand, emerging needs, patterns, and trends. – Investing in research and development for outdoor recreation, such as the Economic Development Administration’s program evaluation of the Travel, Tourism, and Outdoor Recreation Program, and disseminate lessons learned to help the sector grow.