UPDATE, 4.18.18: Thanks to quick and decisive action from across the country in the past 24 hours, the Recreation Not Red Tape Act passed out of the House Natural Resources Committee today with key sections about National Recreation Areas in tact. The threats to these sections were overwhelmingly defeated.
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The Recreation Not Red Tape Act has been called for a hearing tomorrow and is facing a major attack. At this stage of the bill it could take just a few dozen letters and calls to change legislators’ minds. Let’s make it a few thousand and tell Congress mountain bikers support this legislation! Speak up now!
The bipartisan Recreation Not Red-Tape Act, H.R. 3400, is the most important piece of positive legislation we'll see this Congress for protecting mountain biking and outdoor recreation opportunities on public land. IMBA has played a significant role in crafting this bill and is throwing our full support behind it. But we can’t do it without your help. Please add your voice today!
Among other things, the bill helps improve permitting for outfitters and guides; adds a recreation mission to land management agencies currently lacking that focus; directs land managers to be evaluated in part on how they meet recreation objectives; and helps facilitate stewardship by creating new volunteer opportunities and improving cross-jurisdictional trail maintenance. Read more about the bill here.
Possibly the most important section, however, directs land managers to inventory for places on our public lands that could be protected as new National Recreation Areas. A proposed amendment to strike this section of the bill to maximize development will be heard at a committee markup on Wednesday, April 18, and this change could cripple the bill’s impact. Keeping these recreation-rich lands free from inappropriate extraction is critical to protect the places we love to ride. Take action!
