EXPLORE Act Approved By Senate, Heads to the President for Signature
Republicans Announce Agreement on New End of Year Bill
As I have frequently noted, anything can happen in the final days of a Congressional session and this week is certainly proving that to be true.
This afternoon the Senate approved the Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences (EXPLORE) Act, a wide-reaching piece of legislation that will improve the lives of outdoorsmen and women while expanding access to America's public lands and waters. The bipartisan legislation was sponsored by Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-AR) and Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) in the House and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) in the Senate. The EXPLORE Act will:
Improve access to public lands and waters for outdoor recreation
Modernize technology to improve visitor experiences, like increasing broadband connectivity and creating digital recreation passes
Streamline the permitting process and reduce fees for small businesses that depend on public land access
Protect rock climbing in iconic places and create new long-distance bike trails
Restore campgrounds and modernize infrastructure
Support gateway communities by addressing housing shortages and outdated infrastructure
Improve accessibility for military service members, veterans, individuals with disabilities and kids
The bill was approved by the House in April, it now heads to the President for his signature. He is expected to sign it.
Shout out to Visit Bentonville, Visit North Alabama, Mississippi Tourism Association, Destination Panama City, and Destination Rogers, who answered a call from Rep. Westerman for endorsements of the bill from tourism organizations in April. This is a great example of how working collaboratively, we advance key priorities for tourism communities.
Also, Speaker Johnson has announced that agreement has been reached on a new end of year funding bill. This agreement was made without any input from the Democrats. The House is going to reconvene shortly and a vote on the measure is expected around 6:30 pm. I will keep you updated.