Discourse at House: Great American Outdoors Act Discussion in Natural Resources Committee
The Great American Outdoors Act, signed into law in 2021, has brought significant changes to the management of public lands in the United States. One of the key aspects of this legislation is the National Parks and Public Lands Legacy Restoration Fund (LRF), which has been instrumental in funding trail projects aimed at enhancing outdoor recreation and improving public lands access.
The U.S. Forest Service and the Department of the Interior have been actively funding these trail projects. As of now, the Forest Service has funded 526 projects totaling approximately $286.623M. These projects have been distributed across the Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Park Service.
The Forest Service's approach to implementing the LRF has been commended for its public outreach and partnership efforts. Many of these projects are supported and completed by partners and volunteers who leverage the funding provided through the LRF. The Forest Service has also made data on its projects available at https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/gaoa, while the Department of the Interior's project data can be found at https://www.doi.gov/gaoa-project-data. Partnership information for the Forest Service's projects can be found at https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/gaoa/partnerships.
Between 2021 and 2025, at least 558 trail, trail bridge, and trail-related deferred maintenance projects have been or will be funded through the LRF. However, it is important to note that annual maintenance needs of federal land managers outpace annual appropriations funding, resulting in the continued growth of deferred maintenance.
To address this issue, the America the Beautiful Act (S. 1547) introduces a technical correction by proposing to add "and National Fish Hatchery System" to Sec. 200402(e)(1) of the law. This move aims to rectify the current exclusion of the National Fish Hatchery System from the LRF's funding, which affects the United States Fish and Wildlife Service's ability to address deferred maintenance needs at these sites.
The organization, along with 259 trail organizations and entities, has called on Congress to increase funding for our nation's trails through the annual appropriations process. The organization also supports a reexamination and allocation of the proportionality of the LRF to each land management agency based on each agency's actual deferred maintenance backlog. This, they argue, would provide the opportunity to adjust these allocations to better reflect each agency's share of the total backlog.
The organization echoes the recommendations of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy and others that extending the LRF provides the opportunity to adjust these allocations to better reflect each agency's share of the total backlog. Fully addressing deferred maintenance and stopping further backlog growth requires a congressional commitment to providing adequate annual funding to federal land management agencies.
In a public testimony, the organization has supported robust funding for hiking trails in FY26. They believe that this funding is crucial for the improvement and maintenance of trails, bridges, and related infrastructure, ensuring that Americans can continue to enjoy the great outdoors for years to come.
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