Montana Trails, Recreation and Parks Association
Mid-Year Meeting
October 2, 2024
Montana Trails Coalition (MTC) and Legislative Report
The MTC Board of Directors now includes 17 diverse statewide and regional trails-and recreation related organizations. These include organizations representing non-motorized and motorized, rural/backcountry and urban, disabled and medical and advisors including federal and state land managing agencies. At our MTC Board meeting on January 30 2024, we elected the following slate of officers:
Chair: Doug Habermann, Helena/Lewis & Clark County Parks and Recreation Commission
Vice Chair: Matt Bowser, Wild Montana
Secretary: Logan Smith, Bike Walk Montana
Treasurer: Bob Walker, Montana Trails, Recreation & Parks Association
We expanded the MTC Board of Directors to include the medical professional community and physically challenged community. Dr. Tracy Dill of Saint Peter’s Hospital joined our Board in February and Brendan Dalin representing Summit Independent Living, joined our Board in May!
MTC entered into a contractual agreement with Tom Lang on May 6, 2024 for $12,000 for a six month contract to continue with coalition building and enhance advocacy and communication. Recently he served as Recreation and Trails Coordinator for Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks and Manager of Montana’s Trail Stewardship Program. Through an aggressive fund raising campaign, our intention is to enter into a long-term contract with Mr. Lang and eventually hire a full-time staff person.
2025 Montana State Legislature. As in the past, we plan to provide weekly reports concerning recreation and trail bills in the 2025 Montana State Legislature as well as bi-weekly ZOOM legislative reports. MTC’s primary effort in 2025 is continued full funding and authority for Montana’s Trail Stewardship Program (TSP) and RTP and designation of a State Office of Outdoor Recreation.
At this time, based on comments by current acting administrator Deb O’Neill at a state Parks and Recreation Board meeting, it appears that Fish, Wildlife & Parks (FWP), may not request from the legislature full funding of $2.8 million per year collected and available for the Trail Stewardship grant Program. We have submitted a letter to that agency’s director and have testified at the State Parks and Recreation Board meeting asking them to request full available funding for that program. We will continue communications with FWP and are prepared to address the legislature to receive their approval of full funding!
We will also address the legislature about the need for a Montana State Office of Outdoor Recreation. It appears that Montana is the only western state without such an office. Montana did have a Governor’s Office of Outdoor Recreation under a prior governor but that office was not continued under a new administration beginning in 2021.
Bob Walker
