Subject: Fwd: Fw: keep an eye on this-could be GOOD news if it goes
through
Just a little news that was passed on to us. It's kind of nice to
hear some folks at the federal level think about horses too.
Marcia
> > Federal highway law to include provision for >
equestrian activity > > May 29, 2003 > -- from the American
Horse Council > Washington, DC --- President Bushâ??s proposal >
for new surface transportation programs contains a > section which
protects equine access to federal > paths. > > Many
recreational riders have experienced > difficulties in maintaining
access to federal paths > as federal highway law specifically alluded
to > access for hikers and bikers but not other forms of >
recreation. Federal law does not exclude equestrians > from these
walkways, but some federal managers > restricted access because they
claimed that > equestrians were not allowed since they were not >
specifically named in the law. > > The American Horse Council has
worked very > closely with the Federal Highway Administration to >
clarify this situation. > > â??We heard from many members across
the United > States that horses were not being allowed because >
they were not specifically mentioned in the law,â?? > said Jay Hickey,
president of the American Horse > Council. â??We spoke to
representatives of the Federal > Highway Administration and discovered
that this is > not what they intended when they wrote the
original > legislation. They then agreed to try to resolve this >
problem.â?? > > The Bush Administration has just released
its > proposal for the reauthorization of TEA-21, a > federal law
which authorizes the federal surface > transportation programs for
highways, highway > safety, and transit. The new legislation is
referred > to as TEA-3 or SAFETEA, which stands for Safe, >
Accountable, Flexible, and Efficient Transportation > Equity Act of
2003. > > Included in this proposal is language that > would
clarify that a â??Shared Use Pathâ?? is open to > multiple uses,
including equestrian use. > > It is important to note that this is
only the > Presidentâ??s proposal; the final language must still >
be developed by Congress in the next few months. > > â??It is
vital to the $28 billion equine > recreation industry that this language
be included > in the final bill passed by Congress,â?? Hickey
said. > â??We encourage everyone to contact their >
Representatives and Senators to request that the > definition of
â??Shared Use Pathâ?? found in the > Presidentâ??s proposal be included
in the final > legislation. If any riders need help in
identifying > their Representatives, they are welcome to contact >
the American Horse Council.â??
