Permits for Recreation on Public Lands

This final rule updates the regulations of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) that tell how to obtain recreation permits for commercial recreational operations, competitive events and activities, organized group activities and events, and individual recreational use of special areas. It establishes a new system for determining costs for reimbursement to BLM, helping to ensure a fair return to the public for special uses of the public lands. It adds new regulations on how to obtain Recreation Use Permits for fee areas, such as campgrounds, certain day use areas, and recreation-related services. The final rule also meets the policy goal of reorganizing the regulations in a more systematic way. The rule relocates the regulations to the subchapter dealing with other land use authorizations, reorganizes them into an order that flows more logically, and simplifies the language. The final rule is necessary for several reasons. First, it emphasizes and highlights the cost recovery requirements for issuing recreation permits. Second, it updates BLM regulations to reflect changes over the last 15 years in recreational activities and large- scale events. Third, it provides guidance and standards for use of developed recreation sites.