[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 105 (Tuesday, June 20, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Page S3624]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                     National Great Outdoors Month

  Mr. DAINES. Mr. President, Montanans can tell you that nothing beats 
getting outdoors for hunting, skiing, fishing, backpacking--you name 
it; it is our way of life. In fact, after I graduated from Montana 
State University, I had to leave Montana to start my business career, 
but I came back to Montana while my knees were still good so I could 
spend my time enjoying all that Montana's outdoors have to offer. That 
is why I am excited that June is National Great Outdoors Month.
  Montana's outdoors have a special meaning for me. In fact, I even 
proposed to my sweet wife Cindy some 31 years ago next month on the 
summit of Hyalite Peak, just south of Bozeman.
  The value of Montana's outdoors is simply incredible. In fact, 
according to the Outdoor Industry Association, there are 64,000 
Montanans whose jobs are directly tied to our outdoor recreation 
industry. In 2012, outdoor recreation generated almost $6 billion in 
consumer spending in Montana alone. Nationally--taking this to the big 
picture of our great country--outdoor recreation generates $887 billion 
in consumer spending each year and provides 7.6 million jobs.
  Folks travel across our Nation, even from around the world, to come 
visit America's great outdoors. It is all right here in our backyard--
in fact, for me literally. I grew up just about 90 miles from 
Yellowstone National Park. I went to kindergarten through college just 
90 miles away from Yellowstone National Park, and I can tell you, I go 
back there every year with my family.
  Whether it is hiking in Glacier National Park up in Northwest 
Montana, fly fishing the Gallatin River that Brad Pitt and Robert 
Redford made famous with that great movie ``A River Runs Through It''--
which runs right by my hometown--or skiing at Whitefish, Big Sky, or 
floating down the Madison on a hot summer day, we can take these things 
for granted. That is why it is so important to recognize the value of 
the outdoors during National Great Outdoors Month. If you visit one of 
our national parks or if you go on a white water rafting tour, you are 
not only getting a great experience yourself, you know you are giving 
back to our local economy, and you are helping create jobs.
  I want to encourage everyone to recognize National Great Outdoors 
Month by joining me and getting out there. Don't just talk about it. 
Get outdoors and experience all that the outdoors has to offer.
  I yield my time.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Vermont.
  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I thank my colleague from Montana. I have 
hiked in his State before, and it is a wonderful place. Their mountains 
are a tad higher than ours, but both my wife and I love hiking in the 
mountains, and I have enjoyed his State.