Why Climbers Should Care About the Economic Stimulus Bill

AAI just received the following email from the Access Fund:

Access Fund Supporter,

After passing in the House, the $800 billion economic stimulus bill is heading for the Senate. This massive stimulus package hopes to put three million people to work on short-term projects that will have lasting benefits.

If passed, this bill will allocate a large amount of funding to federal land management agencies - the same agencies that manage many of our country's most treasured climbing areas. These agencies, including US Park Service, US Forest Service, and Bureau of Land Management, will spend up to $3 billion of stimulus money on construction-related projects such as road maintenance. And while we don't have influence on whether this bill passes, we do have the opportunity to make suggestions on where this funding will be spent, and help these agencies prioritize projects in and around our climbing areas.

We need your input on potential projects
The Access Fund has joined forces with other members of the Outdoor Alliance to compile a list of infrastructure projects that are important to the active outdoor recreation community. We will put this list in front of the federal land management agencies during upcoming meetings in Washington, D.C. to provide guidance on how to spend this stimulus money.

We need to hear from you! This is your chance to propose a project or highlight a problem with a road, trail, river, or landscape in your back yard that needs increased financial support. Suggestions might include design of new roads, bridges, trails, remediation of abandoned mine sites, and even restoration projects. Please take the following brief survey by Friday February 6 and provide as much information about your suggested project as possible. Take the survey