January 2025 

President Joe Biden signed the Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences (EXPLORE) Act into law on January 7. The legislation expands outdoor access for all Americans, especially underserved communities, veterans, youth and communities across the country.

National parks, forests and other areas overseen by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will receive funding for improvements such as new parking lots, broadband networks, accessible infrastructure and restrooms. It provides funding for modernizing and establishing overnight campsites; better identification on long distance bike trails; allows fixed anchors for rock climbing; and establishes target shooting ranges in national forests.

The law will support businesses, workers and communities who help make outdoor experiences possible, including streamlining the permitting process for guides and outfitter companies.

More people will have access to the outdoors through the Acts included in the law. It renews the Every Kid Outdoors Act, which grants 4th grade students and their families free entry to all the national parks and federal public lands for a year. The Military and Veterans in Parks Act promotes opportunities and outdoor recreation experiences for veterans and active duty service members on federal lands and waters. In addition, the Outdoors For All Act authorizes the Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership program to assist economically disadvantaged communities with limited access to outdoor recreation spaces.

It also calls for the national parks to develop a digital America the Beautiful pass, and introduces a pilot program to more accurately track visitations, including hard to track activities like dispersed camping.

“The EXPLORE Act will supercharge the outdoor recreation industry,” says Jessica Wahl Turner, president of the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable. “This transformative new law will help ensure every American has access to world-class outdoor experiences–from their backyards to the backcountry–while supporting the businesses, workers, and communities who make those experiences possible.”