Wyden: Bill to boost outdoor recreation clears committee
As Oregon prepares for the start of the recreation season, Sen. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee Rob Bishop, R-Utah, announced Wednesday significant progress on their work to remove barriers to outdoor recreation and boost rural economies across the country.
Their bipartisan Recreation Not Red-Tape (RNR) Act, which would promote access to outdoor recreation opportunities and allow more visitors to get outdoors, on Wednesday unanimously passed the House Natural Resources Committee.
The RNR Act would streamline the permitting process for guides and recreation enthusiasts, hold federal agencies accountable for making outdoor recreation a priority for the first time and increase volunteerism to address the maintenance backlog on America’s public lands.
“Our bipartisan RNR Act removes roadblocks that hamstring job growth in rural economies and make it harder for Americans to get outdoors and enjoy all that our public lands have to offer in Oregon and nationwide,” Wyden said. “I’m thrilled Chairman Bishop was able to move our bill forward. We’ll be working overtime to pass the Recreation Not Red-Tape Act into law to speed up rural job creation and help recreation businesses thrive, all while protecting our natural treasures.”
“Today is a great bipartisan win for outdoor recreation. We want to make it easier for all Americans, and the people in my home state of Utah, to enjoy recreation on federal lands and this bipartisan legislation does just that. I’d like to thank Sen. Ron Wyden and my colleagues on the committee for recognizing outdoor recreation’s important role in our economy and for coming together to support reforms that will make valuable recreation improvements a reality,” Chairman Bishop stated.
Wyden introduced a previous version of the RNR Act last year after gathering input from outdoor enthusiasts in Oregon and across the country about how to improve overly complicated and outdated agency processes that make it more difficult for local recreation businesses to thrive.
Read the bill text and a one-page summary of the RNR Act.
