Tell legislators you support outdoor access for ALL Colorado youth!

All Colorado youth deserve the opportunity to experience our state's great outdoors, but not everyone has equal access. In Colorado, the Outdoor Equity Grant Program is bridging this critical gap by providing outdoor educational and recreational opportunities for youth who may otherwise go without. Together, we can ensure that all Colorado youth, regardless of background, have access to nature and the many benefits it provides.
Urge legislators to increase funding for the Colorado Outdoor Equity Grant Program.

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Your Message to the legislators

Dear (name and title inserted automatically),

I am writing to respectfully ask that you vote “YES” in support of HB25-1215-Redistribution of Lottery Fund. Since its creation, the Outdoor Equity Grant Program, administered by Colorado Parks and Wildlife, has provided a total of $8.5 million to support meaningful outdoor experiences for Colorado youth of color, LGBTQ+ youth, immigrant and refugee youth, low-income youth, rural youth and youth with disabilities through environmental education, experiential learning, stewardship programming and more.  To date, this investment has supported more than 65,000 Colorado youth and families in 51 counties.  However, demand for the program far surpasses available funding, resulting in more Colorado youth missing out on transformative outdoor experiences.

This critical piece of legislation concerns the redistribution of lottery “spillover” funds for the outdoor equity fund and the public school capital construction assistance fund (BEST) for the 2024-25 state fiscal year and each state fiscal year thereafter.  If passed, the bill would redistribute, to the extent available, the first $3 million of the lottery fund to the outdoor equity fund, the next $4 million to BEST, and any remaining money as follows:
50% to the BEST fund;
30% to the outdoor equity fund;
10% to the wildlife cash fund; and
10% to the parks and outdoor recreation cash fund.

Lottery spillover dollars must be prioritized for outdoor equity and BEST funding.  By creating a new Outdoor Equity Fund 30% spillover bucket to sit after the 50% BEST spillover, we can ensure these critical programs are sustainably funded for the benefit of all our state’s youth, both in the classroom and out.

Without more funding, the Outdoor Equity Grant Program is limited in its ability to address the stark disparities in outdoor access for underserved communities, perpetuating a cycle of exclusion from outdoor education and recreation.  HB25-1215 is a solution to this challenge and will ensure the Outdoor Equity Grant Program can fulfill its promise to expand access to more Colorado youth.

I kindly request you vote “YES” on HB25-1215 so that all Colorado youth, regardless of background, have access to our great outdoors. 
Thank you for your leadership and your consideration.
Sincerely,