Some National Park Fees Illegal, 9th Circuit Says
Some National Park Fees Illegal, 9th Circuit Says
(CN) - Marking a key victory for public land advocates, the 9th Circuit ruled that federal law prohibits the U.S. Forest Service from charging fees to hikers, campers, picnickers and sight-seers who use undeveloped portions of a national forest.
Colorado-based attorney Matt Kenna told Courthouse News that the decision - the first time an appellate court has ruled on such fees, which have been challenged far and wide - could affect pending cases in Colorado and elsewhere.
"It's actually very important," Kenna said in a phone interview. "No matter how wealthy or poor you are, you can always go and use the public lands ... it's a great equalizer, and that's being encroached on by these [fee] programs."
Though it will likely have national implications, the battleground for the present case was Southern Arizona's Santa Catalina Mountains, which tower over the desert city of Tucson and reach heights of 10,000 feet above sea level. One of the range's peaks, Mount Lemmon, with its twisting paved road into its cool forest climes, is a very popular recreation area for hikers and campers and families hoping to briefly escape the desert heat below. It's also the site of the nation's southernmost ski run.
The Coronado National Forest began collecting a $5 per car fee from all drivers who parked along the 28-mile highway leading to the Mount Lemmon as part of a pilot program that began in 1996. In 2004, Congress enacted the Recreation Enhancement Act (REA), which created guidelines governing when and where the Forest Service could charge visitors for using public lands.
http://www.courthousenews.com/2012/02/10/43785.htm
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