TESTIMONY OF ALAN T. HILL
on behalf of the
AMERICAN HORSE COUNCIL
to the
HOUSE RESOURCES COMMITTEE
May 23, 2001
INTRODUCTION
I appreciate the opportunity to present this testimony on behalf of the American Horse Council (AHC). My name is Alan T. Hill. I am Public Liaison Chair of the Backcountry Horsemen of America and a member of the AHC's Recreation Committee. We appreciate the Committee conducting this important oversight hearing on recreational access to public lands. We hope that by identifying what we believe are existing problems regarding access and discussing the proper balance between the preservation of natural resources and the enjoyment of these resources by recreational horseback riders, our testimony will help the Committee as it examines the broad national themes of public recreation and access to federal lands.
The AHC represents 190 equine organizations in Washington, DC before Congress and the federal regulatory agencies. These organizations include breed registries, national and state breeders associations, state horse councils, recreational associations, organizations representing race tracks, horsemen, horse shows, veterinarians, rodeos and numerous other equine related stakeholders. These organizations include several hundred thousand individual horse owners of all breeds and disciplines and industry service providers involved in virtually every facet of the horse world.
We appreciate this opportunity to give you a broad overview of the condition of public access and associated recreation issues from the perspective of the recreational rider and stock user. The use of horses and recreational stock on federal lands is a rapidly growing segment of the recreating public and is a vitally important issue to the entire equestrian industry.
ECONOMIC IMPACT OF THE HORSE INDUSTRY
According to the study of The Economic Impact of the Horse Industry in the United States done by Barents Group, LLC, the U.S. horse industry, including recreation, showing, racing and other segments, involves more than 7 million participants and includes nearly 2 million horse owners. The median income of horse-owning families is around $60,000 with 38% of households earning under $50,000 and 21% over $100,000.
The industry as a whole has an annual impact on the U.S. economy of $112 billion and supports 1.4 million full-time jobs with approximately $1.9 million paid in taxes at each level. Thousands of breeding and training farms breed, train and care for the horses that provide the foundation upon which the industry is built. In many cases, these facilities provide open envelopes of "green space" in otherwise heavily-urbanized areas.
Economic Impact of the Equine Recreation Industry
The largest and fastest growing segment of the horse industry in terms of participation by Americans is the recreational segment. According to the Barents Study, the equine recreation industry involves 2.9 million horses, 4.3 million participants, has a total economic impact in the U.S. of $23.8 billion and supports 317,000 full-time jobs. This important part of the horse industry provides a great recreational, sporting, competitive and healthy experience to additional millions of Americans, young and old.
The positive economic impact of recreational trail riding is present in all fifty states. For example, in California it involves 278,000 horses, has a $2.8 billion economic effect and supports 23,000 full-time jobs; in Colorado it involves 57,000 horses, has a $500 million economic effect and supports 5,200 full-time jobs; in Florida it involves 109,700 horses, has a $6 million economic effect and supports 5,300 full-time jobs; in Maryland it involves 47,200 horses, has a $242 million economic effect and supports 2,300 full-time jobs; and in Texas it involves 180,000 horses, has a $995 million economic effect and supports 14,000 full-time jobs.
Many individuals ride and compete horses when they are young and millions continue this form of recreation as they mature into adulthood. We expect, however, that as the so-called "baby boomers" approach and enter retirement or semi-retirement more will find themselves in good shape physically and financially and be ready to return to one of the sports in which they can participate late into life - Riding! While this re-entry into the riding community will increase the economic impact of the recreational riding industry, it will also put an even greater burden on our nation's trails and recreational resources.
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