Senate Passes REC Act, Counts Outdoor Recreation Economy as Part of U.S. GDP
The Senate has joined the House of Representatives in unanimously passing the Outdoor REC Act, a critical bill that quantifies the true size of the outdoor economy, including recreational boating which represents billions of dollars in economic activity and hundreds of thousands of jobs. NMMA looks forward to President Obama signing this legislation into law before the end of the year.
The REC Act directs the Secretary of Commerce, through the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), to “conduct an assessment and analysis of the outdoor recreation economy of the United States.” A temporary pilot program was enacted by the Secretary of the Interior in April, and the passage of the REC Act was needed to make sure that the outdoor economy—and its estimated 6 million jobs and $646 billion in economic activity—receives official government recognition for years to come.
NMMA is an active part of the team that will work with the Bureau of Economic Analysis to shape how outdoor recreation is defined and ensure our reach and impact are recognized.