John Barrasso: “I want to congratulate him on the success in the passage of the EXPLORE Act. This is great news for every State, all 50…”

“I want to congratulate him on the success in the passage of the EXPLORE Act. This is great news for every State, all 50 States. It is certainly most important and very important to my home State of Wyoming. As is often the case in this body but not often seen by the press and by the public, this bill is bipartisan. It is a first-of-its-kind recreation package, and it will boost our Nation's outdoor economy. According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, outdoor recreation added over $1 trillion to our national economy in 2023--$1.2 trillion. That is 2.3 percent of our entire gross domestic product, our Nation's gross domestic product. This is a big deal. In my home State of Wyoming, outdoor recreation contributed over $2.2 billion to our State's economy. That is 4.1 percent of our State's gross domestic product. We have a strong outdoor legacy in Wyoming. We work hard to support the local communities. We try to do that by developing an outdoor recreation economy. We do it all across the State. The EXPLORE Act that we have just passed here in the Senate-- previously passed the House and will soon be on the way to the White House--is going to help Wyoming and help the rest of the Nation increase access to the great outdoors. This legislation does several things. It streamlines and simplifies the permitting process for outdoor guides and outfitters. Chairman Manchin and I began working on this legislation the last Congress.…”