Recreational Trails Program

The federal Recreational Trails Program of 1998 establishes a program for allocating funds to the States for recreational trails and trail-related projects. Permissible uses of the funds are: administrative costs, environmental and safety education programs, maintenance and restoration of existing trails; development and rehabilitation of trailside and trailhead facilities and trail linkages for recreational trails; purchase and lease of trail construction and maintenance equipment; and construction of new recreational trails (with restrictions for new trails on Federal lands). Environmental mitigation projects are given priority consideration. At least 30 percent of the funds received each year must be allocated to non-motorized projects. Another 30 percent of the funding is allocated to motorized projects. The remaining 40 percent of the funding is allocated to projects that serve diverse trail use types either motorized, non-motorized, or a combination of both motorized and non-motorized trail uses.

All projects are reviewed by the Recreational Trails Program Advisory Committee, which makes recommendations to the Idaho Park and Recreation Board for final approval.

The Program in Brief

To fund the maintenance and restoration of existing trails, develop and rehabilitate trailhead facilities, purchase and lease trail construction and maintenance equipment, and construction of new recreational trails. Up to 5 percent of the funding each year may be used for environmental and safety education programs.

Budget

About $700,000 annually, funded from the federal gasoline tax. This is money returned to gas users who do not use highways.

Who Can Apply

Governmental entities and private organizations.

Grant Deadline

The last Friday in January.

Grant Forms

Application PDF

Note: We can e-mail applications to you in Microsoft Word or text formats. Request the documents by email. Be sure to specify which format you prefer.

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