January 2016 - Parks & Recreation - 27

face Transportation (FAST) Act. Key
components include:
The Transportation Alternatives
Program (TAP) was moved into the
Surface Transportation Program (STP)
and is now called the " STP set-aside. "
All core elements of TAP, including
the important Recreational Trails Program (RTP), remain intact, including
the same types of eligible projects and
a competitive funding process.
" Complete Streets Lite " language,
in which the Secretary of Transportation shall " encourage " states to adopt
standards for the safe and adequate
accommodation of all users, motorized and non-motorized, in all phases
of planning, development and operation of transportation facilities.
A new National Highway Transportation Safety Administration
(NHTSA) safety program will provide about $14 million a year for bicycle and pedestrian safety in states
that have a 15 percent or higher
share of bike/pedestrian fatalities.
It funds awareness, education and
enforcement.
The NACTO Urban Street Design manual, which includes more
progressive designs to accommodate bicycle and pedestrian users
and facilities, can now be used.
The Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA)
loan eligibility threshold is now down
to $10 million, which should help fund
more active transportation projects.
Unfortunately, the program is facing a
70 percent cut in annual funding (from
$1 billion down to $275 million).
On a disappointing note, the very
popular Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER)
program, which historically has been
managed as a separate U.S. Department
of Transportation initiative, was not included as part of the FAST Act.

Environmental Education
Congress finally approved an updated early childhood education law
that will now be called the " Every
Student Succeeds Act. " After almost
a decade of advocacy efforts to include environmental education in the
overhaul, we are thrilled that the new
law will provide:
* $1.6 billion in federal funding for
grants promoting " well-rounded
education, " including environmental education.
* $1 billion in afterschool grants for
programs, including environmental literacy.
* STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) funding
for programs, including " hands-on
learning " and " field-based or service learning. "
These achievements indicate that
environmental education has become
an accepted and anticipated component of a student's overall education.
More students across the nation will
be engaged in outdoor learning and in
action projects.
Federal funding will now go to
partnership programs involving
school systems and outside public
and private organizations. Most important, park and recreation agencies
are specifically listed as eligible partners to receive funding.
Land and Water Conservation
Fund (LWCF)
NRPA was thrilled that a three-year
reauthorization of the LWCF was
included in the broad " Omnibus "
federal spending package approved
by Congress that will keep the government operating through September 2016. In addition, Congress appropriated $110 million dollars for
the state assistance program, which
includes $12 million for an urban

competitive grant program, the largest allocation for the state assistance
program since 2002.
Park Champions
In NRPA's 50th year, we revamped our
advocacy efforts by empowering our
members to be park and recreation advocates on their home turf through our
Park Champion initiative. In what became the summer of Park Champion
advocacy, our Park Champions took
the pledge and ran with this new grassroots, show-and-tell advocacy model,
hosting events across the country.
We're excited to expand on the 2015
summer of Park Champion advocacy
(www.parksandrecreation.org/2015/
August/The-Summer-of-Park-Champion-Advocacy) by making 2016 the
year of Park Champion advocacy. We'll
be using the full 2016 congressional
calendar to help our Park Champions
identify strategic dates year-round to
host their U.S. representatives and senators at events that highlight their park
and recreation department and programs. The Park Champion show-andtell advocacy model is ideal during the
2016 elections, as your federal elected
officials will be eager to get out and be
seen in their home states and districts.
This past summer, we were floored
by the motivation and creativity of
the Park Champions who stepped up
in the first year of the initiative. Help
us meet our goal and make 2016 the
year of Park Champion advocacy by
signing the Park Champion pledge or
contacting Jayni Rasmussen at jrasmussen@nrpa.org.
As we move forward into 2016,
NRPA's Public Policy Team will continue to make sure the voices of park
and recreation professionals are heard
on Capitol Hill and that Congress continues to support all Americans by supporting parks.

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Parks & Recreation

January 2016 - Parks & Recreation

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