The Outfitter Brief: Offense and Defense: Navigating Federal Policy with Jessica Turner

The Outfitter Brief: Offense and Defense: Navigating Federal Policy with Jessica Turner

This week we are sharing the most recent episode of, The Outfitter Brief, the AO/IOGA shared podcast. If you follow it you should follow that podcast. On this one, Erik Weiseth (IOGA) and Aaron Lieberman (America Outdoors Association) cover the major policy issues facing outfitters and guides, then sit down with Jessica Turner, President of the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable, for a wide-ranging conversation on federal recreation policy, coalition strategy, and an emerging push to connect outdoor recreation with the American healthcare system. Aaron opens with an update on AO's new endorsed insurance program through CBiz Adventure Sports, offering AO members up to 10% off core coverage premiums — a direct response to survey data showing over 90% of outfitters saw premiums rise or coverage drop in the past year. From there, the conversation moves to the Outfitter and Guide Relief (ORG) Act, AO's effort to carve outfitters and guides out of FLSA overtime requirements that have forced operators to cut guide hours and jack up prices. A Senate companion bill from Sen. Steve Daines is imminent, and guide testimonials from affected workers are urgently needed. The two then break down the roadless rule situation — three parallel tracks (House legislation, Senate amendment to the Wildfire Prevention Act via Sen. Mike Lee, and USDA administrative repeal) — and what outfitters should actually be doing right now. They close the policy roundup with an Arizona liability waiver win: legislation signed by Governor Hobbs that clarifies the enforceability of waivers and inherent risk doctrine, similar to what Idaho passed previously. The interview with Jess Turner is the centerpiece. She walks through the just-completed Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee markup of the America the Beautiful Act — a $10 billion Legacy Restoration Fund reauthorization that passed without a single nay vote in one of the most divided committees in Congress. She explains what that money actually does (deferred maintenance on trails, boat launches, campgrounds, visitor infrastructure), how the House version includes a 15% recreation/sportsman carve-out that may not survive the conference, and what the foreign visitor fee issue means for outfitters taking international clients. Timeline: potentially signed before July 4th. The back half of the interview pivots to ORR's America's Outdoor Era health initiative — the argument that outdoor recreation is an upstream, preventative healthcare solution, and the emerging policy and private-sector pathways (HSA/FSA reform, employer benefits programs, hospital partnerships, medical provider training) to formalize that connection. Jess also walks through how ORR maintains its massive, diverse coalition by staying out of place-based conflicts and focusing on process, business stability, and the issues where everyone agrees. The episode closes with news that Iowa became the 25th state to establish an Office of Outdoor Recreation, and a reminder to mark calendars for the IOGA Annual Meeting (December 1–3, Tamarack Resort) and the America Outdoors Conference and Expo (December 8–11, Oklahoma City).

The Dirt Portfolio: Inside the Governor's Office with Kristin Sleeper

In this episode, Erik and Jack cover a packed week of news before sitting down with Kristin Sleeper, Governor Little's new Policy Director. On the news front: Erik recaps a productive National Trails Day outing, Jack reports on Big Water Blowout in Riggins; the guys dig into a new legislative working group on state lands management led by Representative Raybold; and they break down the implications of President Trump's executive order rescinding the Nixon- and Carter-era travel management executive orders — a move they describe as flying under the radar but potentially significant over the long term. They also cover Senator Mike Lee's last-minute amendment to rescind the 2001 Roadless Rule (noting Idaho's own roadless rule insulates the state directly), the new Headwaters Economics report on Snake River dam removal economics from Idaho Rivers United, and the Public Lands Integrity Act — legislation that would close the budget reconciliation loophole that could be used to sell public lands without 60 Senate votes. The main interview with Kristin Sleeper covers her winding path from Detroit to DC to Montana to the Trump administration and finally to Governor Little's office, her vision for a coordinated statewide recreation strategy, Idaho's opportunity to expand Good Neighbor Authority and Shared Stewardship into recreation trail maintenance, the Make Forests Healthy Again executive order, wildfire preparedness for what could be a difficult fire season, and the thorny challenge of creating a sustainable funding mechanism for non-motorized trail maintenance.

The Fish Are Telling Us Something. Jay Hesse on Snake River Salmon's Last Stand

Erik and Jack cover a busy week — Erik returns from the IPW convention in Florida where he spent three days pitching Idaho's outdoor recreation opportunities (jet boat rides, rafting, backcountry horse trips, hunting) to international tour operators and travel agents. They hit the week's policy news: Steve Pierce's official BLM confirmation, $12M in USDA CWD funding, and a sobering stat that the Forest Service maintained 22% fewer trail miles in 2025 than the year prior. Jack does a deep dive on the FY27 Interior/Environment appropriations bill out of Congressman Simpson's subcommittee — covering Forest Service budget levels, PILT funding, hunting/fishing access protections, and provisions on grizzly bears, wolves, and wolverines. Then Jay Hesse, Director of Biological Services for the Nez Perce Tribe, joins for a wide-ranging conversation on the state of Snake River salmon and steelhead — explaining quasi-extinction thresholds, the alarming status of Middle Fork Chinook populations, and the tribe's aggressive conservation measures including cryopreservation, off-site living gene banks, overwinter survival pilots, and marine-derived nutrient enhancement using shad. Jay closes with a public health warning: methylmercury levels in lower Salmon River smallmouth bass are among the highest in the state.

Clearing the Way: Chainsaws, the Frank, and the Fight for Wilderness Access

Erik and Jack kick off with river season updates before diving into policy news: the Public Lands Integrity Act, Jim Risch's support for the America the Beautiful Act's Legacy Restoration Fund reauthorization, the BLM's rescission of the Public Lands Rule, and Steve Pierce's impending BLM director confirmation. The main event is a deep-dive interview on a landmark development: the Salmon-Challis National Forest's authorization — signed the morning of recording — allowing limited gas chainsaw use by permitted outfitters and contractors to clear catastrophically downed timber on specific Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness trails. Erik walks through the legal foundation (the 1964 Wilderness Act's MRA process, the 1978 Endangered American Wilderness Act's House Report, and the trail-clearing mandate in the 1980 Central Idaho Wilderness Act), the scale of the problem (500+ trail miles, up to 700 downed trees per mile), and addresses critics who question the commercial motivation or fear broader precedent. He closes with a passionate case that access is the wilderness's greatest long-term protection.

The Rugged Individual Myth: Guide Mental Health with Shannon Walton

In this week's episode, Erik Weiseth sits down with Shannon Walton, Executive Director of the Redside Foundation — the organization born from tragedy in 2010 that has grown into a trusted lifeline for guides across the American West. Shannon shares the origin story of Redside, her own winding path from professional guide to corporate executive to nonprofit leader, and the remarkable scope of what the organization has built: over 23,000 counseling sessions paid for since 2014, financial coaching, professional development scholarships, healthcare access, and more. The conversation also digs into the real and complex relationship between guiding culture, substance use, mental health, and the myth of the rugged Western individual. Erik also shares IOGA updates from the spring board meeting in Salmon, including a new Hunt Vice President, committee opportunities, and highlights from the strategic planning session.