American Mountaineering Society • American Trails • American Motorcyclist Affiliation • Again Nation Horsemen of America • Equine Land Conservation Useful resource • Worldwide Mountain Bicycling Affiliation • Nationwide Wilderness Stewardship Alliance •Rails-to-Trails Conservancy + 251 Organizations and Entities
Chair Murkowski, Rating Member Merkley, and members of the subcommittee, on behalf of American Mountaineering Society and the hundreds of thousands of path customers our collective organizations signify who spend their time, cash and vitality to get out on trails for recreation, well being and wellness, and to volunteer, we thank the Committee for the chance to supply testimony on the significance of adequately funding our nation’s trails and public lands. We ask the Committee to undertake the next funding requests so the federal authorities can proceed to leverage non-public contributions and profit from volunteer labor to supply financial producing out of doors recreation on your constituents. Appropriations and sufficient staffing for federal land administration companies requested herein, coupled with the numerous sources supplied by non-profit companions, serve to speed up collective stewardship of our nation’s public lands and waters, leading to financial progress and growth from rural gateway communities to city facilities.
Abstract of Request
Forest Service:
Capital Enchancment and Upkeep (CMTL), Trails at $22M, together with funding for the Nationwide Forest System Path Stewardship Path Associate Funding Program
Report Language: With the intention to help sufficient funding for all Forest Service trails and to keep away from a discount within the present finances for non-Nationwide Scenic and Historic Trails managed by the Forest Service, a rise for non-Nationwide Scenic and Historic Trails, if any, ought to happen in parity with the speed of improve, if any, for Nationwide Scenic and Historic Trails;
Report Language: The committee helps continued funding for the Nationwide Forest System Path Stewardship Path Associate Funding Program. Practically half of the Forest Service’s path work is completed at the moment by volunteer teams and non-profit companions. The Forest Service’s profitable Path Stewardship problem price share settlement leverages federal funding through a 5:1 return on funding.
At minimal $58M to fund Recreation, Heritage & Wilderness;
At the very least $6M to fund Legacy Roads & Trails,
Report Language: The committee helps continued funding for the Legacy Trails Grant Program supplied by the Infrastructure Funding and Jobs Act (BIL) . A lot of the Forest Service’s path work is completed at the moment by volunteer teams and non-profit companions. The Legacy Trails Grant Program leverages federal funding through its 8:1 return on funding.
Bureau of Land Administration:
Funding at $11M for Nationwide Trails System Line Merchandise;
Nationwide Conservation Lands at minimal $78M
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service:
Refuge Customer Providers a minimum of $78.969M;
Help Infrastructure-Nationwide Partnership funding;
Nationwide Park Service:
Rivers, Trails, & Conservation Help (RTCA) program at $13.47M;
Park Service Operations for the Nationwide Trails System at a minimal of $22.9M;
Volunteers in Parks packages at a minimal of FY25 ranges,
Customer Providers sub-activity, Youth Partnership Packages at a minimal of FY25 ranges, together with an acknowledgment of the advantages for trails;
Outside Recreation Legacy Partnership at a minimal of of $125M
US Geological Survey:
$1.5M to totally fund the Nationwide Digital Path Undertaking (NDTP);
Forest Service Advice:
Nationwide Forest trails profit everybody and obtain rising public use annually. Collectively, the Nationwide Forests present 159,000 miles of trails for actions starting from mountaineering, biking, horseback using, off-highway automobile utilization, groomed winter trails for cross-country snowboarding and snowmobiling, and entry factors for “river trails.” Roughly 120,000 of the 164,000 miles of trails are in want of some type of upkeep or restore.
Program: Capital Enchancment and Upkeep, Trails
FY26 Funding Stage Requested: $22M
FY25 Enacted Stage: $20M
Division: US Division of Agriculture
Company/Account: Forest Service, Capital Enchancment and Upkeep, Trails
Report Language requested: See Abstract on pg. 1
Program: Recreation, Heritage & Wilderness
FY26 Funding Stage Requested: At, minimal $58M to fund Recreation, Heritage & Wilderness;
FY25 Enacted Stage: $45M
Division: US Division of Agriculture
Company/Account: Forest Service, Recreation, Heritage & Wilderness
Program: Legacy Roads & Trails
FY26 Funding Stage Requested: $6M at a minimal
FY25 Enacted Stage: $6M
Division: US Division of Agriculture
Company/Account: Forest Service, Legacy Roads & Trails
Report Language Requested: See Abstract on pg. 1
Bureau of Land Administration Advice:
The BLM manages 13,468 miles of trails over 245 million acres —extra land than every other federal land administration company and comprises a variety of landscapes that always present the general public much less structured however nonetheless numerous leisure alternatives. BLM recreation sources and customer providers help robust native economies. Greater than 120 city facilities and hundreds of rural cities (comprising 64 million folks) are positioned inside 25 miles of BLM lands.
Program: Bureau of Land Administration Nationwide Trails System Line Merchandise Funding
FY26 Funding Stage Requested:$11M
FY25 Enacted Stage: $11M
Division: Bureau of Land Administration
Company/Account: Trails
Program: Nationwide Conservation Lands
FY26 Funding Stage Requested: $78M
FY25 Enacted Stage: $59.135M
Division: Bureau of Land Administration
Company/Account: Bureau of Land Administration, Nationwide Conservation Lands
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Advice:
Refuge Customer Providers offers funding for path upkeep throughout FWS-managed land. Situated in each U.S. state and territory, and inside an hour’s drive of practically each main U.S. metropolis, Nationwide Wildlife Refuges present unbelievable alternatives for out of doors recreation, together with mountaineering, looking, fishing, birding, boating and nature pictures throughout 2,500 miles of trails. Greater than 37,000 jobs are reliant on refugees. Funding at a stage of $93M will present for path upkeep throughout the land and water trails, refuges, wetlands, and hatcheries, together with eleven Nationwide Scenic and Historic Trails and forty-four Nationwide Recreation Trails.
Program: Customer Providers
FY26 Funding Stage Requested: $78.9694M
FY25 Enacted Stage: $76M
Division: Division of Inside
Company/Account: Fish and Wildlife Service, Customer Providers
Program: Infrastructure
Division: Division of Inside
Company/Account: Fish and Wildlife Service, Infrastructure
Report Language requested: Nationwide Partnerships are an essential part to take care of path infrastructure throughout Fish and Wildlife Service websites. The Division shall proceed help for Nationwide Partnerships and prioritize funding to leverage these partnerships.
Nationwide Park Service Advice:
Nationwide Parks, and the world-class experiences their 18,844 miles of trails present, are one of the crucial unifying forces in America. Effectively-maintained trails enhance the standard of customer experiences and improve customer security.
Program: Rivers, Trails, & Conservation Help (RTCA)
FY26 Funding Stage Requested: $13.47M
FY25 Enacted Stage: $13M
Division: Division of Inside
Company/Account: Nationwide Park Service, Nationwide Recreation and Preservation
Report Language requested: Inside, Nationwide Recreation and Preservation, $13.845M for the Rivers, Trails, & Conservation Help program.
Program: Nationwide Trails System, Park Service Operations
FY26 Funding Stage Requested: $22.9M
FY25 Enacted Stage: $18.856M
Division: Division of Inside
Company/Account: Nationwide Park Service, Park Service Operations
Report Language requested:
Inside, Park Service Operations, $22.9M for administration of the Nationwide Trails System.
Nationwide Trails System.-The Committees perceive the significance of offering sufficient funding for the event and upkeep of the Nationwide Trails System for future generations to take pleasure in. The Committees urge the Service to proceed its efforts to develop Nationwide Scenic and Historic Trails, not restricted to supporting building and upkeep tasks and volunteer coordination efforts, and to acknowledge equal “unit” standing of Nationwide Scenic Trails.
Program: Volunteers in Parks
FY26 Funding Stage Requested: Preserve FY25 stage funding
FY25 Enacted Stage: Stage funding with FY24
Division: Division of Inside
Company/Account: Nationwide Park Service, Park Partnership Help Features
Report Language Requested: The committee recommends funding by way of Volunteers in Parks be supplied for volunteer help of the Nationwide Trails System, Nationwide Rivers, and Nationwide Park Service trails.
Program: Youth Partnership Packages
FY26 Funding Stage Requested: Preserve FY25 stage funding.
FY25 Enacted Stage: Stage funding with FY24
Division: Division of Inside
Company/Account: Nationwide Park Service, Customer Providers
Report Language Requested: The committee recommends funding by way of the Youth Partnership Packages be supplied for help of the Nationwide Trails System, Nationwide Rivers, and Nationwide Park Service trails.
US Geological Survey Advice:
Program: Nationwide Digital Path Undertaking
FY26 Funding Stage Requested: $1.35M
FY25 Enacted Stage:$1.35M
Division: U.S. Geological Survey
Company/Account: U.S. Geological Survey, Core Science Techniques
(Throughout Businesses) Shield and Enhance Staffing for Federal Land Managers Advice:
Federal land company area staffs proceed to undergo from earlier job reductions, and the ensuing lack of oversight is now a roadblock to correct collaborative administration between federal land companies and volunteer-based companions. Essential tasks are stalled ready for plan evaluate or different essential company experience, comparable to environmental research, design and different work that’s above the power and purview of path teams. Delays have lasted years, contributing to the upkeep backlog and, finally, rising the fee to taxpayers for this essential work as trails proceed to deteriorate at an excellent higher price.
We should defend and enhance company staffing ranges to fulfill the necessity. Company front-line managers present essential and unparalleled experience and oversight to nonprofit path companions. This steering is vital to the success of nonprofits as they tackle extra of the administration accountability for our trails and recruit, prepare and marshal hundreds of volunteers in public service. Enhancing company staffing ranges is important to finishing the complicated work of managing and sustaining trails and public lands.
Past enhancing land administration company staffing, we ask the committee to incorporate report language to audit the centralized company hiring practices, which have been recognized as a roadblock to filling hundreds of essential vacancies. Centralizing hiring prevents land managers from rapidly filling vacancies from native expertise swimming pools. The cumbersome course of slows hiring a lot that vacancies usually go unfilled. In lots of circumstances, by the point a job is obtainable, the candidate has already moved on. Extra hiring flexibility would assist native land managers fill vacancies rapidly.
