New state funding available for outdoor recreation projects

The Bighorn Basin Outdoor Recreation Collaborative steering committee met June 27 to discuss new funding.

BBORC member and president of the Tensleep Nowood Trailbreakers volunteer group CJ Grimes said that the Wyoming Office of Outdoor Recreation has now received its fiscal year 2025 funding from the “Wyoming Outdoor Recreation and Tourism Trust Fund.” These funds were allocated for use by the Wyoming State Legislature in 2023 and approved that year by Governor Mark Gordon.

Grimes stated that Wyoming Outdoor Recreation will be the conduit of grants for outdoor recreation projects throughout the state, and that local proposals for new outdoor recreation projects are needed.

“We need local people from the Big Horn Basin to come forward with their projects,” Grimes said. “Projects could involve motorized recreation, equine, trail running, climbing, or many other kinds of outdoor recreation,” he said. Local people with proposals for outdoor recreation projects should contact Amy Crawford ([email protected]) or Sherry Joslyn ([email protected]) at the Wyoming Office of Outdoor Recreation.

Grimes added that Gordon will soon appoint a board to manage distribution and oversight of the designated outdoor recreation funds. Earlier this year, HB0067 in the Wyoming State Legislature provided for the creation of a new Outdoor Recreation and Tourism Trust Account Board. According to the Governor’s website, nine members of the board “will be authorized to use income generated by the Trust Fund to make grants to develop, supplement and promote outdoor recreation infrastructure and opportunities in Wyoming.”

The website specifies that board members will be appointed from each of the state’s nine judicial districts and should reflect a broad spectrum of outdoor recreation experiences. Residents may find more information and potentially apply for an appointment to the board on the Governor’s website (governor.wyo.gov/state-government/boards-commissions).