Melanie Stansbury: “I start by thanking the gentlewoman from New Mexico, my sister from the north, for yielding me the time, and say that I…”

“I start by thanking the gentlewoman from New Mexico, my sister from the north, for yielding me the time, and say that I rise today to both celebrate and urge passage of the EXPLORE Act which we are here debating today on the House floor. This bipartisan bill will not only improve access and opportunities for recreation across our public lands and waters across New Mexico and the United States, it will help to protect and promote opportunities for all people to access our lands and waters. I am especially proud that this package includes my Promoting Accessibility on Federal Lands Act, which is a bill I was deeply proud to have joined forces across the aisle with Representative Ciscomani from Tucson to make the great outdoors accessible to everyone regardless of physical limitations. This bill directs the Secretary of the Interior and Secretary of Agriculture through all of the parks and public lands and waters that they manage to conduct a comprehensive assessment of accessibility options for our trails, our campsites, and our recreational facilities so that every single person can enjoy the great outdoors. Almost half of New Mexico's lands are publicly managed. I ran for Congress as a native New Mexican largely because of my passion and love for protecting the precious lands and waters that make us who we are and to ensure that every single New Mexican has access to the great outdoors-- especially our veterans, which is part of why this bill is so important.…”