February's Legislative Forum: now more than ever - Tip-Off

Parks & Recreation, Dec, 2003

NRPA's 2004 Legislative Forum on Parks and Recreation, to be held Feb. 25-28, takes on a greater significance for advocates of parks and recreation as the second session of the 108th Congress reconvenes early in 2004. Many important policy and funding issues that are vital to parks and recreation were considered in the first session of the loath Congress, and while there were sonic significant and important victories, not all outcomes were favorable to NRPA's interests.

On the plus side, the stunning reversal of the plan to strip funding and eligibility for the Fiscal Year 2004. Transportation Enhancements program stands as the greatest victory. Park and recreation advocates, joined by an extraordinary coalition of trail advocates, health and wellness organizations, and national associations of every type, turned Congress around from a wrong-headed plan to divert Transportation Enhancement funds from biking, biking and rail-trail projects to till highway construction.

However, despite long-standing support for urban park rehabilitation, the Urban Park and Recreation Rehabilitation program went unfunded for the third year in a row when Congress refused to appropriate any funds for it. This 25-year program of the National Park Service has funded more than 1,000 restoration and planning grants for the rehabilitation of urban parks in hundreds of cities and urban counties.

The Land and Water Conservation Fund state-share assistance program, one of the most important federal grant programs for local and state governments, was woefully under-funded, and the entire "Conservation Spending Category" was cut by almost one half-billion dollars from its original promise by Congress.

The 2004 National Policy and Legislative Forum will be of great interest to members for a number of reasons. Attendees will learn how to gain scarce federal funds from the grant-in-aid workshops. Attendees will also have a chance to influence national decision making in support of public parks and recreation, and of course, they will have the best, up-to-date information on national issues and pending federal legislations.

Come join us for networking, agenda-setting and elbow-rubbing. It's a great time, and best of all attendees will have a direct role in helping to set NRPA's national public policy agenda for the coming year.

For more information on this crucial meeting, select "Congress/Mid-Year" from the left-hand menu of links at www.nrpa.org.