In April, CMC staff and volunteers traveled to Washington, D.C., to visit the Colorado congressional delegation. Accompanying Vera Smith, the CMC’s conservation director, was Kathleen May, a San Juan group member and granddaughter of charter members of the CMC. The discussions concentrated on off-road vehicles in National Parks, National Forests, and on Bureau of Land Management administered lands.

Specifically, the CMC delegation asked the Representatives and Senators to: uphold the snowmobile phase-out in Yellowstone National Park; support Rep. Mark Udall’s legislation that proposes to increase penalties for off-road vehicle violations (HR 1382); urge the administration to complete travel management plans expeditiously and support follow-up education, monitoring, and enforcement efforts; increase appropriations for recreation management, including planning, research, monitoring, enforcement, and education; support legislative efforts to earmark one seventh of the proposed Forest Service enforcement budget specifically for off-road vehicle enforcement; and oppose environmental riders on the interior appropriations bills.

The only Colorado delegate with whom CMC did not meet was Senator Campbell because we encountered difficulty in scheduling an appointment.

In addition, the CMC met with the Washington, D.C. recreation staff for the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management to discuss the management of off-road vehicles, and travel and recreation management planning.

The CMC visits the congressional delegation several times each year either in Washington or in Colorado. CMC members and volunteers are always welcomed and encouraged to participate in these visits. Many thanks to Kathleen May, who did a fantastic job expressing the issues of concern with passion and articulation.