Washington, D.C. — The U.S. Senate today advanced the EXPLORE Act, a bipartisan bill that includes key provisions authored by U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., to make the outdoors more accessible and to support the recreation economy in Oregon and nationwide. The bill now heads to the president’s desk to be signed into law.
“As an Oregonian, I know the power of outdoor recreation in uplifting rural economies. From the time a visitor drops their bags at their hotel to wrapping up a long hike with a burger and beer at a local brewery, the entire community benefits,” Wyden said. “I’m glad that Congress is finally recognizing the value of this important sector in making sure that people can enjoy the outdoors. It’s good for our health and good for local economies, especially hard hit rural America.”
For more than a decade, Wyden has fought for Congress to recognize and boost the value of outdoor recreation to rural economies, with the outdoor industry contributing nearly $1.2 trillion in annual consumer spending and supporting millions of American jobs. He first introduced his Recreation Not Red Tape Act (RNR Act) in 2015 after his Seven Wonders tour, where he asked hundreds of Oregon businesses about how to grow the state’s recreation and tourism economy.
Since then, Wyden has successfully built a coalition of bipartisan, bicameral support in Congress that led to today’s final passage of key RNR Act provisions and many more important recreation priorities.
A web version of this release is here.
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