Crapo Introduces Right to Ride

CRAPO INTRODUCES RIGHT TO RIDE

Act preserves access for pack and saddle livestock to federal lands

Recreational trail use on federal lands got a boost this week with the Right to Ride Livestock on Federal Land Act (S. 781) introduced by Idaho Senator Mike Crapo. The bill will improve the ability to maintain trails and facilities for pack and saddle stock on federal lands.

"Idahoans all over the state have voiced their frustration over the reduction of trails available to them for riding activities that many of them helped establish," Crapo said. "With so much of Idaho in the hands of the federal government, we need to ensure that our local public land managers are preserving access to these lands which are so vital to the quality of life in Idaho."

The bill, if passed, would improve access for sportsmen, recreationists, outfitters and guides, and other groups on National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service and Forest Service lands. Right to Ride would seek to place livestock use of trails on equal terms with other users.

"Despite millions of dollars worth of volunteer stewardship efforts on public lands, historical wilderness and backcountry use is in danger of becoming more than just a footnote," said Steve Didier, national chairman of the Back Country Horsemen of America. "Senator Mike Crapo took a major step forward in helping to preserve those historic pack and saddle purposes."

This is the first time the bill has been introduced in the Senate; it was introduced earlier this year in the House by Representative George Radanovich (R-California). Last congressional session, the same bill passed the House but was not taken up by the Senate.

http://crapo.senate.gov/media/newsreleases/release_full.cfm?id=236399&&