Outdoor industry executives will need to spend much more time educating Congress this year to stave off massive cuts to the Land and Water Conservation Fund and other federal programs that boost outdoor recreation, according to Frank Hugelmeyer, president of Outdoor Industry Association.
“There is a saying in Washington that if you are not at the table you are on the menu,” said Hugelmeyer in an interview with The B.O.S.S. Report Friday. “That is exactly the environment in Washington D.C. right now. This is a must win for the industry. We will have to have clear and constant presence in Washington throughout the entire year.”
Hugelmeyer made his remarks Friday in an exclusive interview with The B.O.S.S. Report, after returning from the OIA Capitol Summit, an annual, three-day advocacy event held in Washington D.C. every April.
The summit coincided with intense negotiations over how much and where to cut this year’s federal budget. An impasse threatened to shut down the federal government over the weekend and made it clear that preserving or increasing federal spending on the LWCF and other federal conservation programs in next year’s budget will require tremendous effort.
“The argument that it makes no sense to get engaged in D.C. now because there is no money is a fallacy,” Hugelmeyer said. “There are an enormous number of interest groups going in there right now.”
In more than 60 meetings with members of Congress, their staff and federal land management agencies, delegates from more than 32 OIA member companies positioned LWCF as an investment in outdoor recreation infrastructure that will generate sustainable economic growth and jobs. This strategy entails emphasizing that full funding of LWCF does not require raising taxes because those funds come from revenues from offshore oil and gas leases Congress set aside more than 45 years ago. That means Congress can increase LWCF funding without violating so-called “PAYGO” rules, which compel Congress to counter spending increases with either tax increases of spending cuts to prevent increases to the federal deficit.
“Building a place to play, particularly close to home, is of vital importance, particularly when you are seeing record state deficits,” said Hugelmeyer, referring to deepening cuts to state park budgets nationwide. “As a $289 billion industry that grew 6% last year at retail, one of the arguments that we are a strong contributor and job creator is undeniable. We are $289 billion and growing and we are not a bubble. That message is starting to resonate.”
