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NMMA and other industry leaders are calling Congress together to provide vital public lands and waterways funding support needed in the FY18 budget. In multiple joint messages to members of the House and Senate this past week, NMMA and partners focused on the economic importance of sustaining the $887 billion outdoor recreation industry, emphasizing infrastructure improvements, natural resource conservation and restoration projects including the ongoing work restoring Florida’s Everglades. Without adequate federal funding to manage and restore these resources and infrastructure, boating, fishing and the rest of the outdoor industry cannot thrive and grow.

The first of the three statements NMMA joined this past week was issued by the Outdoor Recreation Industry Roundtable (ORIR), of which NMMA is a member. It cites spending on infrastructure projects, from facility upgrades to internet access, and staffing for recreation programs on public lands and waters, as being imperative for preserving both the industry’s economic and social impact.

The basic operations of the National Park Service (NPS) and other federal management agencies are difficult to sustain under existing circumstances. For example, the NPS currently has a $12 billion maintenance backlog and limited options for significant reduction. NMMA and ORIR are exploring new alternatives for dealing with this backlog and finding innovative financial strategies driven by public-private partnerships, and are also urging Congress to avoid exacerbating this problem through inadequate appropriations.

NMMA also added its voice to those partners focusing on natural resource conservation needs. A letter sent by NMMA and the country’s leading hunting, fishing and conservation groups  encourages Senate and House leadership to support a new bipartisan budget agreement that provides relief from impending sequestration cuts and allows for strong annual funding of natural resource conservation in the FY18 appropriations process. Amongst the points made in the letter: since 1977, the percentage of the federal budget devoted to natural resource needs has been cut in half and now only accounts for one percent of the total federal budget. This trend has negatively impacted recreational access, fish and wildlife habitat, and the health of the nation’s public lands.

Lastly, in an effort led by the American Sportfishing Association (ASA) and Keep Florida Fishing®, NMMA joined a letter sent to the Senate Appropriations Committee expressing strong industry support for increased federal funding of Everglades’ restoration projects that have been authorized by Congress. These include the Central Everglades Planning Project, Tamiami Trail bridging and Herbert Hoover Dike repairs. The need to restore the historic southerly flow of clean water from Lake Okeechobee to Florida Bay is emphasized in the letter, which points out the restored flow is “critical to ensure public safety, maintain proper salinity in the Bay and to reduce the necessity for, and the frequency of, releases to the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie Rivers.”

The boating and fishing industries, as well as the much broader outdoor recreation economy, depend upon healthy natural resources, clean air and water, sustainable fish and wildlife populations, and intact and accessible public lands facilities in order to thrive. NMMA will continue to work with the Administration and Congress and ensure effective representation of industry interests in the difficult Congressional budget process.

For questions, please contact Nicole Vasilaros at [email protected].