Despite the federal budget surplus, this year will be particularly tight for resource agencies. Members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees are poised to make dramatic, across the board cuts to most natural resource agency budgets - including a number of outdoor recreation programs. One program facing significant cuts is the Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program (RTCA).RTCA is a National Park Service program that provides valuable benefits to rural and urban communities across the country in the form of assistance for park, open space, trail, river and watershed planning. Every community in every state - whether or not they are anywhere near a National Park - can benefit from this low cost "win-win" program.

In 1998, RTCA conservation projects resulted in 700 miles of new trails, management plans for 1,100 miles of river corridors, and 33,700 acres of expanded parkland and open spaces. No other federal program does so much to improve the quality of recreational opportunities and the quality of the environment in cities and towns across the United States.

Although very successful thus far, the RTCA is handicapped by its small budget. Last year, Congress appropriated just $7.2 for the program. For FY 2000, the Clinton Administration requested $9.2 million. Although an improvement, even this is figure is not enough. To allow this program to deliver the extensive and broad-based benefits it can, we are advocating for a total of $12 million for the Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program in FY00.Funded adequately, the RTCA could provide huge benefits across the country. We need yourhelp to show the members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees that people across the United States care about the RTCA program and value the outdoor recreational opportunities that it creates!

Please contact Senators Slade Gorton (R-WA) and Robert Byrd (D-WV), as well as your own members of Congress, and urge them to adequately fund the RTCA. (The Senate appropriations bill is moving faster than the House bill, so Senators are a priority right now.)

Address postal mail to:
The Honorable Slade Gorton and Robert Byrd
Senate Appropriations Committee, Interior Subcommittee
131 Senate Dirksen Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

To send a letter by email, here are the addresses:
Senator Slade Gorton: senator_gorton@gorton.senate.gov
Senator Robert Byrd: senator_byrd@byrd.senate.gov

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