Chairman Manchin, with Senator Barrasso co-sponsoring, introduced on the U.S. Senate floor a bill to improve access for facilitated recreation providers on U.S. Public Lands. America’s Outdoor Recreation Act, AORA, has the potential to substantially expand opportunities for more Americans to participate in outdoor recreation activities on public lands.
Stakeholders in the legislation hope for swift consideration by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, which passed AORA unanimously out of committee in 2022.
America Outdoors applauds the effort to create more outdoor recreation opportunities for the guided public. “Now more than ever, we understand the critical role that spending time in the outdoors plays in our mental health. Permitted, facilitated recreation provider the gateway to a lifetime rich with outdoor experiences. America Outdoors is deeply appreciative of both Chairman Manchin and Senator Barrasso for bringing this to the forefront,” America Outdoors Executive Director, Aaron Bannon, commented.
If enacted, AORA will:
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Incentivize existing outfitters to return unused operating days to the managing agency for use by other operators;
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Preserve the integrity of existing special recreation permits;
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Create an avenue for new operators to access and grow their operations;
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Ensure that operators are not charged excessive fees to operate on federal lands;
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Establish a multi-jurisdictional permitting authority for activities that travel through more than one agency
Learn More About AORA