SALEM, Oregon— At their February meeting, the Oregon Parks and Recreation Commission approved the final 2026 Oregon Recreational Trails Plan, which outlines trends and issues, creates priorities for grant funding and recommends actions to improve trails on public land in Oregon over the next 10 years.

To support implementation of the Trails Plan, the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department also developed a new technical resources website for recreation and trail planning: https://www.oregon.gov/oprd/BWT/Pages/Technical-Resources-for-Recreation-Planning.aspx

“We appreciate the time and energy trail users and partners have put into helping us develop the next trails plan, which will guide investments to make our trails even better in the future,” said Oregon Parks and Recreation Department’s Statewide Trails Planner Jessica Horning.

“Each year, more than 80% of Oregonians use trails across the state, generating over $890 million in spending at local businesses and contributing to Oregon’s overall economy.”

The Oregon Recreational Trails Plan covers non-motorized trails (hiking, biking, equestrian), motorized ATV trails, snowmobile trails, and non-motorized boating and water trails. It helps provide guidance to not only Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, but to federal, state and local agencies as well as private sector partners.

Information for the plan came from multiple sources including statewide surveys of trail users and recreation providers conducted in October 2024 and April 2025, multiple focus groups with specific user groups, workshops at the 2024 and 2025 Oregon Outdoor Recreation Summit, and the Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (SCORP), which is published every five years.

With commission approval of the 2026 Plan, State Parks staff will update Recreational Trails Program and ATV Grant criteria to be consistent with the plan. Updated grant criteria will be applied to both grant program’s next solicitations in Fall 2026.

For questions about the draft Oregon Trails Plan, please visit our website or contact OPRD Statewide Trails Planner Jessica Horning at .horning@oprd.oregon.gov" target="_blank">Jessica.r.horning@oprd.oregon.gov.  

SALEM, Oregon— A new Rule Advisory Committee (RAC) will review proposed updates to the County Opportunity Grant Program (COGP) rules and provide feedback on draft rule changes.

The Rule Advisory Committee will meet from 2 to 4 p.m. Monday, April 13. The public can watch the livestream on the OPRD Director’s Office channel on YouTube. A recording will be available after the meeting.

The Rule Advisory Committee includes representatives from local governments, recreation providers and other stakeholders with experience in park and recreation planning, development and management.

Staff will incorporate the committee's feedback into the proposed draft rules and then open them for public comment. Following the public comment period and hearing, staff will present the proposed rules to the Oregon State Parks and Recreation Commission for consideration of adoption.

The County Opportunity Grant Program (COGP), administered by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD), provides financial assistance to counties for the acquisition, development, rehabilitation and planning of county park and recreation areas that provide camping facilities.

OPRD is proposing updates to portions of the rules to reflect modern program practices, improve administrative clarity and ensure consistency with related state and federal grant programs.

The proposed changes include updating definitions, formalizing administrative processes, clarifying grant application requirements and scoring criteria, and increasing administrative flexibility. The proposal also includes adding an emergency procedure rule and a conversion rule to establish long-term stewardship requirements that align COGP with other OPRD grant programs.

The proposed rule changes are intended to update and clarify grant program practices without altering the core purpose or structure of the program.

Interested individuals can follow updates, read the draft rules, and learn more about the rulemaking process on the OPRD rulemaking webpage found here.

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