This week, outdoor recreation trade organizations and companies applauded the overwhelming passage of the EXPLORE Act. This bill, which still needs to pass the Senate and be signed by President Biden, would improve access to public lands and waters, create a better permitting process for guides and outfitters, modernize infrastructure and technology at public visitor centers, and enhance access for members of the military, kids, and individuals with disabilities.
The Outdoor Recreation Roundtable, a coalition of outdoor recreation associations representing over 110,000 outdoor businesses, wrote a letter to Congress providing an apt summary of this bill:
“The EXPLORE Act will create more access to outdoor recreation, provide a better experience for visitors to public lands and waters, modernize the permitting process for guides and outfitters, create new accessible trails for veterans and the disability community, expand the Every Kids Outdoors Act, codify the Outdoor Recreation Legacy Program (ORLP), identify new potential long distance bike trails, create more health and wellness opportunities including for mental health, and a better business environment to create more jobs. This transformative legislation is a win-win-win for businesses, our cherished lands and waters, and Democrats and Republicans alike, all while supporting rural economies, communities, and our American quality of life.”
The EXPLORE Act was sponsored by Natural Resources Committee Chairman and Ranking Members, Bruce Westerman (R-AR) and Raúl Grijalva, and 50 other members of Congress. Now, the bill heads to the Senate. The Upper Chamber’s outdoor recreation bill, the America’s Outdoor Recreation Act, complements the EXPLORE Act, but may need to forge further efforts to harmonize the bills and send legislation to the President. In any event, in today’s incredibly polarized society and dysfunctional Congress, outdoor recreation continues to be a bright spot for bipartisanship, which you have to appreciate.
