New Report Shows Benefits of Protecting Public Lands to California Small Businesses

Public lands are essential to local economies in California and are the catalyst to creating new jobs, attracting entrepreneurs and visitors, and boosting consumer spending, according to a new economic report by Small Business Majority. "A Small Business Voice for Public Lands in the West" examines the importance of public lands in California, Colorado, New Mexico, and Montana, and provides recommendations policymakers can take to ensure the protection of America's public lands and natural assets.

"Small business owners—who account for nearly half of all private-sector employment in this country—understand the connection between the preservation of public lands and the benefit that brings to their bottom lines," said John Arensmeyer, Founder & CEO of Small Business Majority. "Washington should be focusing on creating new parks, expanding outdoor recreational opportunities and helping protect the public lands that draw in visitors and give an economic boost to their communities."

The report recommends Congress grant permanent federal protection to Berryessa Snow Mountain, fully fund and reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund, and that the federal government formally track jobs in the outdoor recreation industry. Why? Because protecting national public lands helps sustain small businesses and local communities in California and the West. The report found:

• Nearly six in 10 California residents participate in outdoor recreation annually. Outdoor recreation generates a vast $85.4 billion in consumer spending, $6.7 billion in state and local tax revenue, and directly contributes to 732,000 jobs and $27 billion in wages and salaries.
• The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages 15.2 million acres of public land in California, which is nearly 15 percent of the state's total landmass. A 2013 BLM report found recreational visitors to California's parks and monuments spent a vast $20 billion in 2008 on trip expenditures and equipment needed for recreational activities.
• A recent survey from Headwaters Economics found that from 2000 to 2011, California's economy created 503,104 net new jobs, with the great majority of this growth coming from services industries. What's more, Western rural counties with at least 30 percent of its land base under federal protected status increased jobs by a vast 345 percent over the last 40 years.

"Our small business community benefits greatly from the many trails, campgrounds, streams and lakes surrounding us," said Kevin Goss, owner of Village Drug Company in Greenville, California. "The financial viability of our local businesses, including my own pharmacy, relies heavily upon the tourism these recreational areas bring to the county. Thanks to national parks like Lassen, our small business community is supported greatly by tourists who come from all over the U.S. and the world to enjoy our area's vast natural assets."

Additional polling from Small Business Majority found small business owners believe protecting public lands would positively impact small business opportunities, local job growth, state economies and more. Nearly two-thirds of small business owners believe designating new national parks and monuments would enhance local jobs and the economy, and a sweeping 90 percent believe public spaces that draw tourists can boost business for local restaurants, hotels, grocery stores and more.

To view the full report, please visit: http://www.smallbusinessmajority.org/small-business-research/public-lands/041615-public-lands-west.php