On February 8, the Riverside County Board of
Supervisors in Southern California approved a resolution opposing the Adventure
Pass program (Southern California's Forest Service Recreation Fee Demonstration
Program (Fee Demo) project)
and asking Congress to restore proper funding of public lands through tax dollars.
The vote was unanimous (4-0) with one supervisor absent.
The resolution reads as follows:
"WHEREAS, Congress authorized the United States Forest Service to charge visitors to the Angeles, Clevelamd, Los Padres, and San Bernardino National Forests daily and yearly fees to obtain a permit to park on forest land, and issue citations for failure to obtain such a permit; and
WHEREAS, the Adventure Pass Program charges $5.00 per day or $30.00 per year for individuals to park their vehicles within the National Forest when they hike or camp in the forest; and
WHEREAS, the Adventure Pass fee constitutes a regressive tax, which bears no relation to the actual costs of many types of passive recreation such as hiking, having a roadside picnic or observing wildlife; and
WHEREAS, while the original intent of the Adventure Pass Program was to generate revenue to maintain recreational facilities and enhance visitor services, it has garnered strong criticism from forest users who are concerned that some residents may be deterred from visiting and enjoying our national forests; and
WHEREAS, while the controversy over the Adventure Pass continues, the core issue of providing adequate funding for forest maintenance remains unsolved; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Supervisors of the County of Riverside, State of California, assembled in regular session on February 8, 2000, does hereby request an end to the Forest Service's Adventure Pass Program and further requests restoration of the much needed maintenance fund in the Forest Service Budget; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the Board transmit this resolution to the County's Washington representative for distribution to the County's Congressional Delegation and such other members of Congress as may be deemed necessary."
On February 4th, Chris Buckley and John
Joline of New Hampshire both received letters from the U.S. Attorney's Office in
New Hampshire dismissing their charges for violating the Forest Service's Recreation Fee
Demonstration Program (Fee Demo). Mr. Buckley spoke with sources close to the U.S. Attorney's
Office who seemed to indicate that all Fee Demo cases
were being dismissed in the state of New Hampshire until the Forest Service and the
prosecutor's office could work out the problems they have been having implementing
the law.
As of now, and until this situation can be rectified, it appears that a person can park in the White Mountains National Forest with impunity until the Forest Service come up with a better way to prosecute.
The Forest Service has been using a Code of Federal Regulations (CFR 261.15) which says nothing about fining an individual for not displaying a pass or decal on their vehicle. In a case involving Mr. Tate Trautz of Portland, Maine, the judge raised the standard of proof for the prosecution, declaring that the simple lack of a pass or sticker on a car does not prove CFR 261.15's "failure to pay a fee." Mr. Joline and Mr. Buckley, who formed a group called New England Public Forest Advocates, to oppose Fee Demo, learned immediately after the Trautz trial that the Forest Service and federal attorneys were going to have a big strategy meeting to figure out how to proceed, given this tremendous restriction.