The Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences (EXPLORE) Act will increase access to national parks and other federal recreation areas like the Grand Canyon. Photo: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images
One of Joe Biden's final acts as president will leave a lasting impact on outdoor recreation in Arizona and across the West.
State of play: The bipartisan Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences (EXPLORE) Act is hailed as a first-of-its-kind effort to boost the $1.2 trillion outdoor recreation industry by modernizing and improving public lands access.
The measure, signed Jan. 4, won bipartisan support in both chambers and broke through the partisan gridlock in Washington, D.C., with provisions to support hunting, fishing, climbing and other sports.
Arizona's U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva and U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego, (then a member of the House), were among the bill's 51 co-sponsors.
Why it matters: Arizona has 22 national parks, monuments and recreation areas, including the Grand Canyon, one of the most visited national parks in the U.S. and a source of great pride for the state.
Sandy Bahr, director of the Sierra Club's Grand Canyon Chapter, said the EXPLORE Act will help get more people outdoors in Arizona's national parks, national forests and other public lands.
What they're saying: "Arizona is really blessed with an abundance of public lands. Outdoor recreation is important to our state, culturally and economically. And this act helps more people to have access to our beautiful state. What can be bad about that, right?" Bahr told Axios.
The intrigue: The modernization efforts include digital national park passes, broadband internet access at recreation sites and campgrounds, and better data collection about visitor numbers.
Other provisions give more flexibility to guides and outfitters with permits to operate on federal lands and encourage the development of more accessible wilderness opportunities for children and those with disabilities.
An Obama-era program that gave every fourth grader and their family free entry into federal lands was extended.
