---
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source_pdf: oregon-prosperity-council-report-june-2026.pdf
fingerprint: 8ac9aef8ca1b
page_range: [380, 382]
breadcrumb: ["Appendix E: Submissions & Feedback", "44. Oregon Trails Coalition (Steph Noll)"]
source_links:
  pdf: "https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Documents/Oregon%20Prosperity%20Council%20Report_June%202026.pdf#page=380"
  raw_pages:
    - "../../.extracted/pages/page-0380.txt"
    - "../../.extracted/pages/page-0381.txt"
    - "../../.extracted/pages/page-0382.txt"
---

# 44. Oregon Trails Coalition (Steph Noll)

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## TL;DR  *(generated · confidence: high)*

The Oregon Trails Coalition, led by Stephanie Noll, urges the Oregon Prosperity Council to invest strategically in outdoor recreation infrastructure and reinstate the vacant Office of Outdoor Recreation (unfilled since April 2023). They advocate for meaningful trail network funding tied to 2027 transportation legislation, citing 2024 national data showing outdoor recreation generated $1.3 trillion in economic impact and 5.2 million jobs. Oregon's 2022 outdoor recreation economy contributed $20.6 billion in economic output and 192,000 jobs. They reference the Great Alleghany Passage Trail—a $80 million investment yielding $121 million in annual economic impact and 1,400 jobs—as a model for Oregon's 15 Signature Trails.

**Key points** *(each cites a PDF page)*:

- National outdoor recreation generated $1.3 trillion in economic impact (2.4% of U.S. GDP) and 5.2 million jobs in 2024 ([p. 380](https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Documents/Oregon%20Prosperity%20Council%20Report_June%202026.pdf#page=380))
- Great Alleghany Passage Trail: $80 million initial investment generates $121 million in annual economic impact, supporting 1,400 jobs and $74+ million in direct visitor spending ([p. 380](https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Documents/Oregon%20Prosperity%20Council%20Report_June%202026.pdf#page=380))
- More than 80% of Oregonians report using local trails ([p. 380](https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Documents/Oregon%20Prosperity%20Council%20Report_June%202026.pdf#page=380))
- Oregon's 2022 outdoor recreation economy generated $20.6 billion in total economic output and 192,000 full- and part-time jobs ([p. 381](https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Documents/Oregon%20Prosperity%20Council%20Report_June%202026.pdf#page=381))
- Every dollar spent on outdoor recreation in Oregon generates an additional $0.31 in secondary economic activity ([p. 381](https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Documents/Oregon%20Prosperity%20Council%20Report_June%202026.pdf#page=381))
- Oregon's Office of Outdoor Recreation has been vacant and unstaffed since April 2023, despite being enabled by 2017 legislation and codified in HB 2171 ([p. 381](https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Documents/Oregon%20Prosperity%20Council%20Report_June%202026.pdf#page=381))
- Oregon's Recreational Trails Program and Oregon Community Paths program are vastly oversubscribed, forcing project scope reductions ([p. 381](https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Documents/Oregon%20Prosperity%20Council%20Report_June%202026.pdf#page=381))
- Senators Merkley and Wyden secured $1.3 M in Congressionally Directed Spending for Signature Trails in Columbia Gorge, Umatilla NF, and Willamette NF in 2024 ([p. 381](https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Documents/Oregon%20Prosperity%20Council%20Report_June%202026.pdf#page=381))

Amounts: $1.3 trillion · 2.4% of U.S. GDP · 5.2 million jobs · $80 million · $121 million · 1,400 jobs · $74+ million · $46 million · Dates/FTE: 2024 · 2022 · 2017 · 2021 · Programs: Oregon Signature Trails · Office of Outdoor Recreation · Recreational Trails Program · Oregon Community Paths program · HB 2171 · Governor's Task Force on Outdoor Recreation · Parties: Oregon Trails Coalition · Stephanie Noll · Governor's Prosperity Council · OPRD

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> **Source:** PDF [pp. 380-382](https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Documents/Oregon%20Prosperity%20Council%20Report_June%202026.pdf#page=380) · raw: [380](../../.extracted/pages/page-0380.txt) · [381](../../.extracted/pages/page-0381.txt) · [382](../../.extracted/pages/page-0382.txt)

Breadcrumb: Appendix E: Submissions & Feedback > 44. Oregon Trails Coalition (Steph Noll)

---
May 15, 2026
Dear Members of the Governor’s Prosperity Council,
As you map a strategy for the advancement of Oregon’s economic prosperity and growth,
we ask you to consider the power of investing in Oregon’s outdoor recreation economy:
both in the trails and public infrastructure that support outdoor experiences for Oregon
residents and tourists alike, and in supporting the outdoor business sector for which Oregon
is a national leader.
BEA data showed that nationally, in 2024, outdoor recreation generated $1.3 trillion in
economic impact (2.4% of U.S. GDP) and 5.2 million jobs, reflecting the desire of
Americans across the country to get outdoors and recreate. Oregon’s natural landscapes
from mountains to ocean, from our high deserts to our Wild and Scenic Rivers, hold huge
potential for a thriving and robust outdoor recreation economy, but we are currently leaving
much of that potential on the table as other states make strategic investments that draw
both businesses and visitors away from our state.
More than 80% of Oregonians report using local trails, and we know that connected trail
systems help visitors stay longer, spend more, and reach small businesses. However, thus
far, Oregon has failed to invest strategically in our Oregon Signature Trail system.
To illustrate the strategic power of investment in trails, let’s look at a single example from
our nation’s other coast, the 150-mile Great Alleghany Passage Trail, a walking and biking
trail connecting cities and small towns from Pittsburgh to Cumberland. The infrastructure
that cost $80 million in initial investment to create now generates more than $121 million in
annual economic impact, supporting 1,400 jobs and $74+ million in direct visitor spending
and an additional $46 million from indirect/induced spending. That’s the impact of just one
fully-connected and maintained 150 mile trail. Imagine the power of investing in fully
connecting Oregon’s 15 Signature Trails pictured below.
www.oregontrailscoalition.org | 503-290-4569 | steph.noll@oregontrailscoalition.org

Even with our anemic investment in trails and other recreation infrastructure, the 2022
Economic Analysis Of Outdoor Recreation In Oregon report showed that outdoor recreation
in Oregon supported $15.7 billion in expenditures, $20.6 billion in total economic output,
192,000 full- and part-time jobs, and $12.4 billion in Oregon GDP in 2022. Every dollar
spent on outdoor recreation in Oregon generated an additional $0.31 in secondary
economic activity, with benefits flowing to restaurants, hotels, grocery stores, outfitters,
retailers, and rural main streets.
SHORT-TERM INVESTMENTS FOR LONG-TERM PROSPERITY AND A THRIVING
OREGON OUTDOOR ECONOMY
Reinstate Oregon’s Office of Outdoor Recreation
Oregon’s Office of Outdoor Recreation, originally enabled through legislation in 2017, and
further codified in 2021’s HB 2171, has remained empty and unstaffed since April 2023.
This office is critical for cross-agency and cross-sector coordination and collaboration to
streamline efforts to forward Oregon’s outdoor recreation economy such as those laid out in
the Governor’s Task Force on Outdoor Recreation’s 2020 Framework for Action. We are
especially in need of an all-lands hub for outdoor recreation planning and coordination in
light of the disinvestment in and reorganization of federal land management agencies,
affecting the management of more than 50% of the land mass of our state.
Meaningfully invest in a world-class trail network for Oregon
Trails are how we access Oregon’s iconic landscapes. Oregon’s trails funding programs are
vastly oversubscribed from the Recreational Trails Program administered by OPRD to the
Oregon Community Paths program administered by ODOT. Our public agencies are
frequently forced to reduce project scopes, building our trails network by just a mile (or less)
at a time rather than making the bold investments that can transform local economies.
As the legislature takes up transportation funding again in 2027, there is an opportunity to
dedicate new funding in a transportation package for a transformative investment in
developing and maintaining our statewide multi-use path network: creating the kind of
communities where businesses want to locate, people want to live, people of all ages can
safely get around, and visitors choose as destinations for multi-day trips.
Oregon leaders can also call for more direct investment in Oregon’s Signature Trails such
as the $1.3 M Congressionally Directed Spending allocation Senators Merkley and Wyden
secured for Signature Trails in the Columbia Gorge, Umatilla NF, and Willamette NF in
2024.
www.oregontrailscoalition.org | 503-290-4569 | steph.noll@oregontrailscoalition.org

Learn more about Oregon Signature Trails at
https://www.oregontrailscoalition.org/signature-trails
As you conclude your work, I hope the council will include strategies to support the state
agencies managing our state lands and waterways, to invest in the trails and other
recreation infrastructure that makes Oregon an accessible, appealing, world-class
destination, and to support Oregon’s outdoor recreation businesses from our small guides
and outfitters to our outdoor product companies serving international markets.
Thank you for your work,
Stephanie Noll, Director
The Oregon Trails Coalition is a cooperative body of broad-based, statewide trail interests
dedicated to supporting, promoting, and advocating for the preservation, development, and
stewardship of a statewide network of sustainable, world class trails. The Oregon Trails
Coalition strives to ensure that Oregon’s trails benefit all of our residents and visitors, and
inspire respect for Oregon’s natural and cultural resources. Our advisory council includes
representatives from more than thirty federal, state, and local agencies, trail user groups,
outdoor industry and tourism partners, and volunteer organizations. We represent walkers,
bikers, runners, paddlers, equestrians, adaptive equipment users, skiers, snowmobilers,
and motorized trail enthusiasts.
www.oregontrailscoalition.org | 503-290-4569 | steph.noll@oregontrailscoalition.org

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Parent: [Appendix E: Submissions & Feedback](./INDEX.md) · PDF: [pp. 380-382](https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Documents/Oregon%20Prosperity%20Council%20Report_June%202026.pdf#page=380)