December 12, 2014 - Over 14,000 recreation residence cabin owners across the country are important stewards and advocates for national forests, local rural communities, and forest health. After 100 years of history and heritage, recent large and unsustainable increases in permit fees have threatened the viability of individual cabins and the cabin program as a whole. The Cabin Fee Act ensures the continuation of recreation residence cabins on National Forest lands by implementing a fair and equitable permit fee system that can be efficiently administered by the USDA Forest Service.
The Cabin Fee Act, was included in a package of public lands bills added to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The legislation passed the House on Thursday, Dec. 4 and the Senate followed on Friday, December 12. President Obama is expected to sign the legislation into law in the coming days.
Cabin owners all across America wish to thank Congress for acting to secure the future of the Recreation Residence Program. We wish to thank our supporters from both parties in both the House and Senate and particularly wish to extend our deep gratitude to our House sponsor, Congressman Doc Hastings (R-WA) and our Senate sponsor, Senator Jon Tester (D-MT). Both gentlemen and their staffs have been extremely helpful and unwavering in their support and dedication throughout this seven-year effort.
This milestone achievement coincides with the 100th anniversary of the Recreation Residence Program on National Forest lands. Passage of this Act ensures continued economic support to local rural communities and enhances cabin owners’ forest stewardship activities in partnership with the USDA Forest Service. We extend a special thank you to Forest Service Chief, Tom Tidwell, for the US Forest Service’s unwavering support of the legislation on behalf of the cabin community and the American public.
Senate Approves Measure to Keep Cabin Fees Fair and Affordable
Bill to be Signed into Law by President
"After years of hard work to fix this problem, I’m pleased that this bill is now on its way to being signed into law. It puts a fair solution in place by creating a stable pricing structure and will help keep these family-owned cabins affordable for future generations to enjoy,” said Hastings.
Cabin owners have recently been faced with arbitrary, skyrocketing fees as a result of a faulty appraisal system that has allowed annual cabin fees to increase exponentially. Unable to afford the mounting fees, owners are faced with the choice of selling their cabins or abandoning and tearing them down. Hastings’ Cabin Fee Act of 2014, which was the basis for this provision, establishes a simple, predictable fee-setting system under which cabin lots are assigned a place on a six tiered fee structure based on current appraisal.
Source: Committee on Natural Resources
