This bill creates a special fund called the Ski Area Fee Retention Account that will collect and manage fees that ski resorts pay to operate on national forest land. Instead of sending all these fees to the general Treasury, the money will stay in this dedicated account and be available for spending without needing Congress to approve each use.

Here's how the money gets spent: When a ski resort pays its annual permit fee, 80 percent of that money stays at that specific ski area to improve it and run the ski program there. Of that 80 percent, three-quarters goes toward things like maintaining facilities, trails, and parking areas that visitors use, while one-quarter goes toward things like wildfire prevention, search and rescue, and visitor services. The remaining 20 percent of fees can be used at any national forest for similar purposes. If a ski area collects more money than it needs in a given year, the leftover funds can be distributed to other national forests.

The bill specifies what this money can be used for: maintaining and repairing ski area facilities, processing permit applications, training staff, managing visitor services, preventing wildfires near ski areas, maintaining trails and roads, and supporting search and rescue operations. The money cannot be used for actual wildfire suppression or buying new land. This change takes effect 60 days after the bill becomes law, and it's meant to help ski areas on national forests improve their facilities and services by keeping more of the revenue they generate locally rather than sending it all to Washington.

Ski Hill Resources for Economic Development Act of 2023

Bennet, Michael F.

Ski Hill Resources for Economic Development Act of 2023 This bill allocates ski area permit rental charges for ski area administration, improvements, visitor services, and wildfire preparedness. Such charges are collected by the Department of Agriculture (USDA) from ski area operators on National Forest System land. USDA shall expend 80% of the ski area permit rental charges from a National Forest System unit at that unit in accordance with the following: <ul> <li>75% shall be used at the unit for activities such as administration of the ski area permit program, visitor information, or reducing the likelihood of wildfire in or adjacent to a recreation site; and</li> <li>25% shall be used at the unit for activities such as repair of a Forest Service-owned facility, habitat restoration, or search and rescue activities.</li> </ul> The remaining 20% of ski area permit rental charges shall be expended by USDA for any of the activities specified in this bill at any National Forest System unit.