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HOME  - Land management Recreation Industry Insider Update
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Recreation Industry Insider Update |
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Written by Scott Silver
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Thursday, 10 August 2006 |
Next to the American Recreation Coalition, the Western States Tourism Policy Council is as well connected as any lobby organization gets when it comes influencing the management, control, pricing and access of both recreation and tourism on America's public lands.
Pasted below are short excerpts from their newest bulletin.
Issues currently of special interest to WSTPC include the fate of their own Gateways legislation, the fate of National Park Management Policies and the fate of recreation user fees.
WSTPC issues nine or ten fact-filled bulletins every year, each about 12 pages. These can be found at: http://www.dced.state.ak.us/wstpc/Publications/keyfedissues.htm.
WSTPC also has a most incredible "Memorandum of Understanding between the Western States and the Federal Public Lands and Resources Agencies." They make a small portion of that document available on their website at: http://www.dced.state.ak.us/wstpc/Publications/FEDMOU.htm . I've made the entire document available on the Wild Wilderness website at http://www.wildwilderness.org/docs/wstpc.htm . Though who are familiar with the document have found it shocking. Unfortunately, far too few are familiar with the document.
Scott
--- EXCERPTS FOLLOW----
http://www.dced.state.ak.us/wstpc/Publications/IssuesBulletin07_06.pdf
WSTPC NATIONAL ISSUES BULLETIN
July/August, 2006
An e-mail service for members of the Western States Tourism Policy
Council by WSTPC Washington, DC, Representative Aubrey King
(202.251.6845), who can provide more details on any of the issues
reported here. Comments or suggestions are always welcome.
Gateways Bill
The Department of the Interior and the USDA Forest Service on July 14,
2006, proposed 18 amendments to H.R. 585. Most of these are "technical"
amendments, with a modest effect on the substance of the legislation.
At least two, however, are more serious. One would change the current
bill's "directing" the agencies to do certain things to "encouraging"
the agencies to do so - a standard agency response to almost every
attempt to have Congress dictate their actions. Another would leave it
entirely up to the Federal agencies to designate which communities are
"gateways" under the act, while the current bill also allows State
tourism offices to make that designation. The agencies raise
constitutional federal system questions to allowing States to have such
a role. Discussions are underway with Congressional staff regarding
these proposed agency amendments.
... Witnesses for the Department of the Interior and the Forest Service
expressed support for H.R. 585 but indicated they intended to suggest
several amendments. More troubling were several critical questions from
Senator Craig Thomas (R-WY), which we have to address. In his
testimony, Bob Warren indicated the bill is supported by the WSTPC, the
National Association of Counties, the American Bus Association, the
National Tour Association, the National Association of RV Parks &
Campgrounds and the Travel Industry Association of America.) ...
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National Parks Management Policies
...In its July 17th comments, the WSTPC made the following points
regarding the new draft NPSMP in urging that the draft be reconsidered:
(1) More emphasis should be placed on the importance and the
feasibility of park managers striving to balance the conservation and
enjoyment of the national parks, with "win-win" solutions being the
goal where conservation and public use goals can be achieved together.
(2) The NPSMP should recognize the positive potential value of the
tourism industry in helping guide, direct and manage visitor volume.
(3) The NPSMP should recognize and support the potential, invaluable
role of State Tourism Offices in providing experience and expertise in
managing visitors.
(4) The NPSMP should recognize the invaluable role of the NPS Tourism Office.
(5) The NPSMP should recognize the importance of gateway communities. National Parks Visitation Concerns
... Subcommittee Chairman Steve Pearce (R-NM) wants to increase
national park visitation and was so pleased with the hearing and the
ideas it generated that he announced that he will have a follow-up
hearing on the same subject in September.
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Recreation Fees
The Recreation Advisory Council (RAC) structure mandated by the 2004
Recreation Enhancement Act (REA) for the Forest Service and the BLM is
expected to be announced in the next few weeks. An interagency
agreement between the FS and the FLM is expected to be signed by the
end of August. It will then be published in the Federal Register. The
final RAC structure will generally provide single state RACs (as the
WSTPC has long urged) and that existing BLM Resourc Advisory Councils
(RACs) will be utilized in several cases, although there will be a
number of variations. The WSTPC was successful in getting the REA to
mandate that State Tourism Offices be represented on State RACs.
The following national RAC structure will be as follows:
1) Existing BLM Resource Advisory Councils (BLM RACs) will be used in
States where appropriate. These States include: Arizona, North and
South Dakota, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah.
2) Both agencies will use new Recreations RACs, to be established by
the Forest Service, for each of the Pacific Northwest (Oregon and
Washington) and the Pacific Southwest (California) Regions.
3) The Forest Service will use new Recreation RACs to be established
for each of the Eastern and Southern Regions (these represent most
States east of the Rockies).
4) The Forest Service will use an existing Forest Service Advisory Board for the Black Hills National Forest.
5) Recreation RACs are not being established where the Secretaries of
Agriculture and the Interior, in consultation with the Governor of
individual States, have determined that sufficient interest does not
exist in forming a Recreation RAC as allowed in the REA. Right now
those States that are not establishing Recreation RACs are Wyoming and
Nebraska. Discussions are still occurring with Alaska and Colorado.
6) Any of the above Recreation/BLM RACs may choose to develop
subcommittees to better address local community or recreation interest.
7) BLM Resource RACs and Forest Service Recreation RACs will be
providing recommendations for both BLM and Forest Service recreation
fees where applicable.
There has been a delay in issuance of the Request for Proposals
regarding design and planning of the interagency America the Beautiful
Pass. Originally scheduled for earlier this summer, it has been
announced that "the Government is reevaluating this (RFP) requirement
and revisions will be made accordingly." This makes it very doubtful
that the Pass will be available to the public by the 2006 holiday
season as had been planned.
On February 6, 2006, the WSTPC submitted comments regarding the
Statement of Proposed Work to implement the America the Beautiful Pass,
urging that state tourism offices be explicitly involved in the
development of this pass, promised to be issued for the first time in
late 2006 or early 2007. This has apparently not happened.
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