The 42-page revised version (by way of an amendment) of Rep. Regula's HR 3283, the permanent recreation fee bill, is headed for markup on Wednesday September 22nd.  Markup is where the full House Resources Committee votes on sending it on to the House floor for a vote.  They may send it on as it is written, they may amend it, or they (hopefully) may reject it altogether.

Indications are that the 24 minority Democrat Committee members may oppose the HR 3283 amendment- but there are 28 majority Republican Committee members, most of whom might support the new version of HR 3283.  (The amendment language is still not available on the internet.)

Our job is to encourage the majority Republican Committee members to vote against this fee bill.

Below are phone and fax numbers for the 28 Republican Committee members, followed by the contact info for 4 key Committee Democrats.

Please, please, please - do all you can to call and/or fax these legislators between now and Wednesday morning.  This action alert, which will go far and wide, is the ONLY opportunity to register your disapproval of this permanent recreation fee legislation for America's public lands.  We don't have an army of lobbyists, but we do have you and thousands like you.  We've made a difference before and we can do it again.  After seven years of fighting Fee Demo, this is THE decisive week.

If the HR 3283 amendment passes as written, fees will be levied on most of America's public lands for the indefinite future; there'll be multiple layers of fees for everything from rustic campsites to site specific areas, and expanded fees for additional "services."

WHAT TO SAY AND FAX:
Please ask, briefly, each legislator to oppose any amendment to HR 3283 that still has Basic or Standard fees, a National Pass for public lands and a Fee Advisory Committee at markup, and to support S.1107 (the Senate bill which passed this year, making ONLY Park Service fees permanent and allowing the others to lapse).

It's a pretty simple message and, believe it or not, 32 phone calls to the list below can take as little as 20 minutes of your time Monday or Tuesday.

 WHO TO CONTACT:
Please call/fax ALL the 28 Republican House Resources Committee members below.  If your time is limited, make sure to contact Committee chair Pombo and legislators from your home state, at least.  (If you can only call a few, please pick them at random so those at the top of the list don't get more calls than those lower down.)  Below that, are listed 4 key Democrat Committee members, including minority chair Rahall (who supports us strongly); please contact all of these if you can.

Remember that faxes will go through more easily AFTER office hours in DC!

If all of us manage to make calls and send faxes, we believe it WILL be possible to stop HR 3283!  Thank you for your continuing efforts to help stop Fee Demo.

ALL NUMBERS BELOW, AREA CODE (202)
House Resources Committee - Republican Members

CHAIR Pombo, Richard - CA       Ph: 225-2761 or 225-1947

                        Fax: 225-5929

Bishop, Rob - UT        Ph: 225-0453
            Fax: 225-5857

Calvert, Ken - CA  Ph: 225-1986   
                Fax: 225-2004

Cannon, Chris - UT Ph: 225- 7751
           Fax: 225-5629

Cole, Tom - OK     Ph: 225-6165
            Fax: 225-3512

Cubin, Barbara - WY        Ph: 225-2311
            Fax: 225-3057

Duncan, Jr., John  - TN    Ph: 225-5435
            Fax: 225-6440

Flake, Jeff - AZ   Ph: 225-2635
            Fax: 226-4386

Gallegly, Elton - CA    Ph: 225-5811
            Fax: 225-1100

Gibbons, Jim - NV  Ph: 225-6155
            Fax: 225-5679

Gilchrest, Wayne - MD   Ph: 225-5311
               Fax: 225-0254

Hayworth, J.D. - AZ            Ph: 225-2190
                Fax: 225-3263

Jones, Walter - NC   Ph: 225-3415
          Fax: 225-3286

McInnis, Scott - CO            Ph: 225-4761
                Fax: 226-0622

Nunes, Devin - CA  Ph: 225-2523
            Fax: 225-3404

Osborne, Tom - NE  Ph: 225-6435
            Fax: 226-1385

Pearce, Stevan - NM            Ph: 225-2365
                Fax: 225-9599

Peterson, John - PA            Ph: 225-5121
                Fax: 225-5796

Putnam, Adam - FL  Ph: 225-1252
            Fax: 226-0585

Radanovich, George - CA    Ph: 225-4540
            Fax: 225-3402

Rehberg, Dennis - MT    Ph: 225-3211
               Fax: 225-5687

Renzi, Rick - AZ   Ph: 225-2315
            Fax: 226-9739

Saxton, Jim - NJ   Ph: 225-4765
            Fax: 225-0778

Souder, Mark - IN  Ph: 225-4436
            Fax: 225-3479

Tancredo, Thomas - CO    Ph: 225-7882
              Fax: 226-4623

Tauzin, W.J. (Billy) - LA    Ph: 225-4031
          Fax: 225-0563

Walden, Greg - OR  Ph: 225-6730
            Fax: 225-5774

Young, Don - AK    Ph: 225-5765
            Fax: 225-0425


House Resources Committee - Key Democrat Members

CHAIR Rahall,  Nick - WV   Ph: 225-3452 or 225-6065
                        Fax: 225-9061 or

Baca, Joe - CA  Ph: 225-6161
            Fax: 225-8671

Cardoza, Dennis - CA    Ph: 225-6131
               Fax: 225-0819

Udall, Mark - CO   Ph: 225-2161
            Fax: 226-7840

BACKGROUND

The Senate recently passed S. 1107, which calls for permanent recreation fees for only the National Parks and allows the program to expire for the BLM, Forest Service and US Fish and Wildlife Service. While the Senate action is a major victory for Fee Demo opponents, we are only halfway to our goal. We must now persuade the House Resources Committee to also pass legislation very similar to S. 1107!

THE PUSH FOR HR 3283

HR 3283's author, Rep. Ralph Regula (R-OH), is in line to be chair of the House Appropriations Committee next year - a powerful position controlling all the money that Congress distributes.  It is risky for Congressmen to oppose him on legislation he's introduced - such as HR 3283 - as Rep. Regula is in a position to retaliate later by restricting funds for programs supported by his opponents. The Administration was unable to get congressional sponsorship for HR3283 from any western Representative, so they have turned to this guy from Ohio to do their bidding.  Rep. Regula is actively twisting arms on the House Resources Committee to try and get HR3283 passed, and he may succeed.

It is a sad day when someone so hostile to rural and western values can rise to such a position of power in Washington that he actually might be able to make this happen. Let's help our Congressmen stand up to Regula.

Thank you for your help in the Fee Demo fight. 

In the past year, the F.S has spent tax payer dollars to make improvements including new toilets, campfire rings, picnic tables, parking and road improvements. Now they are going to allow a private company to reap the benefits and charge us for access. The necessity of the improvements is debatable, however access fees and private industry involvement in public lands management is a dangerous trend that must be stopped. We propose that the line be drawn at Lockett Meadow. We urge you to take part in the action alerts below and to volunteer with this campaign. PLEASE NOTE: this campaign will not move forward in a sufficient manner without a working group of volunteers. The Arizona NoFee Coalition is already overstretched working on legislation to end Fee Demo and create a viable economic solution to put the necessary time into this. We have crafted a campaign strategy but volunteers are needed to move it forward. More information on Lockett Meadow will be posted to our website soon so please keep posted.

1. Call Gene Waldrip, Peaks District Ranger, at 928-527-3600 and let him know you are opposed to camping and use fees in Lockett Meadow, especially when imposed by a private company. Please also ask him to hold a public meeting to discuss alternative solutions. In a recent phone conversation, Gene told me personally that he believes the public is perfectly willing to accept the situation at Lockett Meadow- we urge you to prove him wrong!!
2. Send a letter to the editor of the Arizona Daily Sun explaining your disapproval of this decision. PO Box 1849. Flagstaff, AZ 86002 or azdsopinion@azdailysun.com or http://www.azdailysun.com/opinion/letter_submit.cfm
3. Contact us to tell us that you have written a letter or made a phone call so we can keep track of the opposition.
4. GO CAMPING – and Don't Pay. Yes folks, once again the Arizona NoFee Coalition is advocating for you to put your money where your beliefs are by keeping that money in your wallet.
5. GET INVOLVED!!! The campaign to overturn this decision and keep public lands a public entity needs your help. Everything from passing out flyers to contacting supporting organizations and from graphic design work to doing the research to create the solutions. Remember- ONLY YOU CAN PREVENT FOREST FEES!!

NOTE: for those that do not know- nestled just below the inner basin on the San Francisco Peaks, and only 35 minutes from Flagstaff, Locket Meadow is one of the most pristine camping and hiking spots in Northern Arizona. Worth Protecting!!

Five years ago, opposition to the Recreation Fee Demonstration Program consisted of a handful of individuals. Today opposition to this increasingly unpopular program involves over 230 organizations and comes from millions of Americans. And DESPITE this, the few, but powerful, proponents of recreation user fees still hold the inside track. The American Recreation Coalition and their allies within Congress are still successfully advancing their anti-democratic pay-to-play agenda.

That being the case, we have NO OPTION other than to take control of the issue and to convince Congress and the media to acknowledge that the American People OPPOSE Fee-Demo. We do not want this program to be permanently authorized. We do not want our public lands commercialized, privatized and over-developed.

Instead we want public lands to be adequately funded with public dollars and for the use of those lands to always remain a a public good that all Americans are FREE to enjoy.

WRITE YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS!!

Currently, there is very little congressional support for making Fee Demo permanent. This is thanks to the dedicated efforts of those few who have consistantly written to their members of Congress. We ask that you take a moment to contact your elected officials and let them know how you feel about this insulting program. Simply follow the directions below. Thank you.

1. Highlight the sample letter below using your mouse.
2. Using the tools in your "Edit" tool bar, copy the highlighted text.
3. Follow the link below the sample letter. There are two links, one for your Representative and one for your Senators. Please visit both websites.
4. After locate your elected official, a page will appear asking for your personal information. This lets the folks you are contacting know that you are a constituent.
5. Once you get to the "enter text" dialogue box, use the "Edit" tool bar to paste the text.
6. Submit the email..
7. Use the "back" key (several times) to return to our website.

I am writing you to urge you to work to terminate the nation wide, multi-agency Recreation Fee Demonstration Program. Attached as a congressional rider to the Omnibus Consolidated Rescissions and Appropriation Act of 1996, and known as P.L. 104-134, the program poses a dire threat to the integrity and vitality of our shared national landscapes.

More citizens of this country are recreating than ever before. As more of us grow to know and treasure our shared natural heritage, more of our tax dollars must flow to the agencies entrusted by us to care for them. This would seem a simple fact of a representational democracy. Instead, we have seen the opposite, as agency recreation budgets have plummeted while visitation has risen.

Specific concerns with the Recreation Fee Demonstration Program are as follows:

• As U.S. citizens, we have already paid taxes for professional management of our public lands. These landscapes are our birthright, and it is the right of all Americans to have access to them, not only the priveledge of those who can afford to pay the fees.
• Once fees are implemented, history shows they increase over time. We have already seen fees at other sites, i.e. National Parks, double in one year.
• Already, Fee Demo programs have been shown to exclude lower income folks from the public landscape..
• Despite claims that funds collected will enable agencies to perform their duties, Congress historically cuts the agency's operating budget by the same amount that has been collected through such fee programs. This year Bush is hoping to eliminate $175 million from the budget of the Forest Service. This is practically twice what the agency has collected in SIX YEARS of Fee Demo receipts. This leaves the agency with no extra funds for maintenance and an enlarged bureaucracy concerned primarily with administering and enforcing an unpopular program.
• It is a gross injustice to the tax paying public of this nation to continue to use our tax dollars to allow transnational corporations to access and profit on the public landscape while we must pay yet another fee in order to simply enjoy our shared natural heritage.

The country's sweeping and magnificent landscapes, as diverse and varied as the nation itself, must remain truly within the public domain. Please support legislation to terminate the Recreation Fee Demonstration Program immediately. The Forest Service must return to the work of truly helping the land and serving people. Erecting tolls and bureaucracy that alienates the public from the very land that binds us together is truly unpatriotic and must not be allowed to continue. Please restore congressional funding for responsible management of these cherished resources.

Please include this in any and every record about this issue. Thank you. I look forward to your response.

Sincerely,

To find your elected officials:

SIGN THE ONLINE PETITION AGAINST FEE DEMO!!

Simply go to http://www.petitiononline.com/feedemo/petition.html and follow the prompts to add your name to the growing list!

JOIN THE AZ NO FEE COALITION!!

Please contact us so that we may add you to our closed and private list of activists. We send out periodic updates and action alerts about this, and only this, important issue. Of course, you can always leave the list if need be.

TELL YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS ABOUT THIS IMPORTANT ISSUE!!

Encourage everyone you know to visit www.aznofee.org and get involved in this historic struggle for the very meaning of our public lands! Grassroot campaigns such as this require that each one of us do a little bit to make sure that the will of the people not be ignored. Together, we can save not only our relationship to the very land it self, but we can work to ensure that future generations both know and respect the awesome beauty that is the shared natural heritage of the United States of America.

"If you think your actions are so small as to have no effect, you have never spent a night in bed with a mosquito."
--Anonymous