I 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4706 

To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to carry out programs and activities 

that connect Americans, especially children, youth, and families, with 

the outdoors. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 21, 2014 

Mr. KIND (for himself, Mr. CONNOLLY, and Mr. PRICE of North Carolina) 

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 

Natural Resources, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and 

Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 

in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to carry out programs and activities that connect Americans, especially 

children, youth, and families, with the outdoors. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Healthy Kids Outdoors 

5 Act of 2014’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds as follows: 


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1 (1) Children today are spending less time out2 doors than any generation in human history, as evi3 denced by studies that show children enjoy half as 

4 much time outdoors today as they did just 20 years 

ago, while spending more than 71 5 ⁄2 hours every day 

6 in front of electronic media. 

7 (2) The health of our children is at risk as evi8 denced by the growing obesity crisis where, in the 

9 past 30 years, childhood obesity has more than dou10 bled in children and quadrupled in adolescents, cost11 ing the economy of the United States billions of dol12 lars each year. 

13 (3) Our military readiness is declining as nearly 

14 1 in 4 applicants to the military is rejected for being 

15 overweight or obese, which is the most common rea16 son for medical disqualification. 

17 (4) Research has shown that military children 

18 and families are facing increased stress and mental 

19 strain and challenges due to multiple, extended de20 ployments. Military family service organizations have 

21 developed programs that connect military children 

22 and families with positive, meaningful outdoor expe23 riences that benefit mental and physical health, but 

24 they lack sufficient resources to meet increasing de25 mand. 


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1 (5) In addition to the negative economic impact 

2 of childhood obesity, the outdoor retail industry, 

3 many local tourist destinations or ‘‘gateway commu4 nities’’, and State fish and wildlife agencies rely on 

5 revenue generated when individuals spend time out6 doors to create jobs in local communities. 

7 (6) Over the past several years, urbanization, 

8 changing land use patterns, increasing road traffic, 

9 and inadequate solutions to addressing these chal10 lenges in the built environment have combined to 

11 make it more difficult for many Americans to walk 

12 or bike to schools, parks, and play areas or experi13 ence the natural environment in general. 

14 (7) Spending time in green spaces outside the 

15 home, including public lands, parks, play areas, and 

16 garden, can increase concentration, inhibition of ini17 tial impulses, and self-discipline and has been shown 

18 to reduce stress and mental fatigue. In one study, 

19 children who were exposed to greener environments 

20 in a public housing area demonstrated less aggres21 sion, violence, and stress. 

22 (8) Visitation to our Nation’s public lands has 

23 declined or remained flat in recent years, and yet, 

24 connecting with nature and the great outdoors in 

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1 eration of outdoor enthusiasts who will visit, appre2 ciate, and become stewards of our Nation’s public 

3 lands. 

4 (9) Spending time outdoors in nature is bene5 ficial to our children’s physical, mental, and emo6 tional health and has been proven to decrease symp7 toms of attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, 

8 stimulate brain development, improve motor skills, 

9 result in better sleep, reduce stress, increase cre10 ativity, improve mood, and reduce children’s risk of 

11 developing myopia. 

12 (10) Children who spend time playing outside 

13 are more likely to take risks, seek out adventure, de14 velop self-confidence, and respect the value of na15 ture. A direct childhood experience with nature be16 fore the age of 11 promotes a long-term connection 

17 to nature. 

18 (11) Conservation education and outdoor recre19 ation experiences such as camping, hiking, boating, 

20 hunting, fishing, archery, recreational shooting, wild21 life watching, and others are critical to engaging 

22 young people in the outdoors. 

23 (12) As children become more disconnected 

24 from the natural world, the hunting and angling 

25 conservation legacy of America is at risk. 


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1 (13) Hunters and anglers play a critical role in 

2 reconnecting young people with nature, protecting 

3 our natural resources, and fostering a lifelong un4 derstanding of the value of conserving the natural 

5 world. 

6 (14) Research demonstrates that hunters who 

7 become engaged in hunting as children are among 

8 the most active and interested hunters as adults. 

9 The vast majority of hunters report they were intro10 duced to hunting between the ages of 10 and 12, 

11 and the overwhelming majority of children are intro12 duced to hunting by an adult. 

13 (15) Parks and recreation, youth-serving, serv14 ice-learning, conservation, health, education, and 

15 built-environment organizations, facilities, and per16 sonnel provide critical resources and infrastructure 

17 for connecting children and families with nature. 

18 (16) It takes many dedicated men and women 

19 to work to preserve, protect, enhance, and restore 

20 America’s natural resources, and with an aging 

21 workforce in the natural resource professions, it is 

22 critical for the next generation to have an apprecia23 tion for nature and be ready to take over these re24 sponsibilities. 


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1 (17) Place-based service-learning opportunities 

2 use our lands and waters as the context for learning 

3 by engaging students in the process of exploration, 

4 action, and reflection. Physical activity outdoors con5 nected with meaningful community service to solve 

6 real-world problems, such as removing invasive 

7 plants or removing trash from a streambed, 

8 strengthens communities by engaging youth as cit9 izen stewards. 

10 (18) States nationwide and their community 

11 based partners have some notable programs that 

12 connect children and families with nature; however, 

13 most States lack sufficient resources and a com14 prehensive strategy to effectively engage State agen15 cies across multiple fields. 

16 (19) States need to engage in cross-sector agen17 cy and nonprofit collaboration that involves public 

18 health and wellness, parks and recreation, transpor19 tation and city planning, and other sectors focused 

20 on connecting children and families with the out21 doors to increase coordination and effective imple22 mentation of the policy tools and programs that a 

23 State can bring to bear to provide outdoor opportu24 nities for children and families. 


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1 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti4 ty’’ means— 

5 (A) a State; or 

6 (B) a consortium from one State that may 

7 include such State and municipalities, entities 

8 of local or tribal governments, parks and recre9 ation departments or districts, school districts, 

10 institutions of higher education, or nonprofit or11 ganizations. 

12 (2) LOCAL PARTNERS.—The term ‘‘local part13 ners’’ means a municipality, entity of local or tribal 

14 government, parks and recreation departments or 

15 districts, Indian tribe, school district, institution of 

16 higher education, nonprofit organization, or a con17 sortium of local partners. 

18 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

19 the Secretary of the Interior. 

20 (4) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any of 

21 the several States, the District of Columbia, the 

22 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States 

23 Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Com24 monwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, any 

25 other territory or possession of the United States, or 

26 any Indian tribe. 


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1 SEC. 4. COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS FOR DEVELOPMENT 

2 OR IMPLEMENTATION OF HEALTHY KIDS 

3 OUTDOORS STATE STRATEGIES. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized to 

5 issue one cooperative agreement per State to eligible enti6 ties to develop, implement, and update a 5-year State 

7 strategy, to be known as a ‘‘Healthy Kids Outdoors State 

8 Strategy’’, designed to encourage Americans, especially 

9 children, youth, and families, to be physically active out10 doors. 

11 (b) SUBMISSION AND APPROVAL OF STRATEGIES.— 

12 (1) APPLICATIONS.—An application for a coop13 erative agreement under subsection (a) shall— 

14 (A) be submitted not later than 120 days 

15 after the Secretary publishes guidelines under 

16 subsection (f)(1); and 

17 (B) include a Healthy Kids Outdoors State 

18 Strategy meeting the requirements of sub19 section (c) or a proposal for development and 

20 submission of such a strategy. 

21 (2) APPROVAL OF STRATEGY; PEER REVIEW.— 

22 Not later than 90 days after submission of a 

23 Healthy Kids Outdoors State Strategy, the Sec24 retary shall, through a peer review process, approve 

25 or recommend changes to the strategy. 


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1 (3) STRATEGY UPDATE.—An eligible entity re2 ceiving funds under this section shall update its 

3 Healthy Kids Outdoors State Strategy at least once 

4 every 5 years. Continued funding under this section 

5 shall be contingent upon submission of such updated 

6 strategies and reports that document impact evalua7 tion methods consistent with the guidelines in sub8 section (f)(1) and lessons learned from implementing 

9 the strategy. 

10 (c) COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGY REQUIREMENTS.— 

11 The Healthy Kids Outdoors State Strategy under sub12 section (a) shall include— 

13 (1) a description of how the eligible entity will 

14 encourage Americans, especially children, youth, and 

15 families, to be physically active in the outdoors 

16 through State, local, and tribal— 

17 (A) public health systems; 

18 (B) public parks and recreation systems; 

19 (C) public transportation and city planning 

20 systems; and 

21 (D) other public systems that connect 

22 Americans, especially children, youth, and fami23 lies, to the outdoors; 

24 (2) a description of how the eligible entity will 

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1 cially those that serve children, youth, and families, 

2 including those serving military families and tribal 

3 agencies; 

4 (3) a description of how State agencies will col5 laborate with each other to implement the strategy; 

6 (4) a description of how funding will be spent 

7 through local planning and implementation sub8 grants under subsection (d); 

9 (5) a description of how the eligible entity will 

10 evaluate the effectiveness of, and measure the im11 pact of, the strategy, including an estimate of the 

12 costs associated with such evaluation; 

13 (6) a description of how the eligible entity will 

14 provide opportunities for public involvement in devel15 oping and implementing the strategy; 

16 (7) a description of how the strategy will in17 crease visitation to Federal public lands within the 

18 State; and 

19 (8) a description of how the eligible entity will 

20 leverage private funds to expand opportunities and 

21 further implement the strategy. 

22 (d) LOCAL PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—A Healthy Kids Outdoors 

24 State Strategy shall provide for subgrants by the co25 operative agreement recipient under subsection (a) 


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1 to local partners to implement the strategy through 

2 one or more of the program activities described in 

3 paragraph (2). 

4 (2) PROGRAM ACTIVITIES.—Program activities 

5 may include— 

6 (A) implementing outdoor recreation and 

7 youth mentoring programs that provide oppor8 tunities to experience the outdoors, be phys9 ically active, and teach skills for lifelong partici10 pation in outdoor activities, including fishing, 

11 hunting, recreational shooting, archery, hiking, 

12 camping, outdoor play in natural environments, 

13 and wildlife watching; 

14 (B) implementing programs that connect 

15 communities with safe parks, green spaces, and 

16 outdoor recreation areas through affordable 

17 public transportation and trail systems that en18 courage walking, biking, and increased physical 

19 activity outdoors; 

20 (C) implementing school-based programs 

21 that use outdoor learning environments, such as 

22 wildlife habitats or gardens, and programs that 

23 use service learning to restore natural areas 

24 and maintain recreational assets; and 


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1 (D) implementing education programs for 

2 parents and caregivers about the health benefits 

3 of active time outdoors to fight obesity and in4 crease the quality of life for Americans, espe5 cially children, youth, and families. 

6 (e) PRIORITY.—In making cooperative agreements 

7 under subsection (a) and subgrants under subsection 

8 (d)(1), the Secretary and the recipient under subsection 

9 (a), respectively, shall give preference to entities that serve 

10 individuals who have limited opportunities to experience 

11 nature, including those who are socioeconomically dis12 advantaged or have a disability or suffer disproportion13 ately from physical and mental health stressors. 

14 (f) GUIDELINES.—Not later than 180 days after the 

15 date of the enactment of this Act, and after notice and 

16 opportunity for public comment, the Secretary shall pub17 lish in the Federal Register guidelines on the implementa18 tion of this Act, including guidelines for— 

19 (1) developing and submitting strategies and 

20 evaluation methods under subsection (b); and 

21 (2) technical assistance and dissemination of 

22 best practices under section 7. 

23 (g) REPORTING.—Not later than 2 years after the 

24 Secretary approves the Healthy Kids Outdoors State 

25 Strategy of an eligible entity receiving funds under this 


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1 section, and every year thereafter, the eligible entity shall 

2 submit to the Secretary a report on the implementation 

3 of the strategy based on the entity’s evaluation and assess4 ment of meeting the goals specified in the strategy. 

5 (h) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—An eligible entity re6 ceiving funding under subsection (a) for a fiscal year— 

7 (1) may use not more than 5 percent of the 

8 funding for administrative expenses; and 

9 (2) shall use at least 95 percent of the funding 

10 for subgrants to local partners under subsection (d). 

11 (i) MATCH.—An eligible entity receiving funding 

12 under subsection (a) for a fiscal year shall provide a 25- 

13 percent match through in-kind contributions or cash. 

14 SEC. 5. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR ENCOURAGING AMERI15 CANS TO BE ACTIVE OUTDOORS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than September 30, 

17 2015, the President, in cooperation with appropriate Fed18 eral departments and agencies, shall develop and issue a 

19 national strategy for encouraging Americans, especially 

20 children, youth, and families, to be physically active out21 doors. Such a strategy shall include— 

22 (1) identification of barriers to Americans, es23 pecially children, youth, and families, spending 

24 healthy time outdoors and specific policy solutions to 

25 address those barriers; 


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1 (2) identification of opportunities for partner2 ships with Federal, State, tribal, and local partners; 

3 (3) coordination of efforts among Federal de4 partments and agencies to address the impacts of 

5 Americans, especially children, youth, and families, 

6 spending less active time outdoors on— 

7 (A) public health, including childhood obe8 sity, attention deficit disorders and stress; 

9 (B) the future of conservation in the 

10 United States; and 

11 (C) the economy; 

12 (4) identification of ongoing research needs to 

13 document the health, conservation, economic, and 

14 other outcomes of implementing the national strat15 egy and State strategies; 

16 (5) coordination and alignment with Healthy 

17 Kids Outdoors State Strategies; and 

18 (6) an action plan for implementing the strat19 egy at the Federal level. 

20 (b) STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT.— 

21 (1) PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.—Throughout the 

22 process of developing the national strategy under 

23 subsection (a), the President may use, incorporate, 

24 or otherwise consider existing Federal plans and 

25 strategies that, in whole or in part, contribute to 


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1 connecting Americans, especially children, youth, 

2 and families, with the outdoors and shall provide for 

3 public participation, including a national summit of 

4 participants with demonstrated expertise in encour5 aging individuals to be physically active outdoors in 

6 nature. 

7 (2) UPDATING THE NATIONAL STRATEGY.—The 

8 President shall update the national strategy not less 

9 than 5 years after the date the first national strat10 egy is issued under subsection (a), and every 5 years 

11 thereafter. In updating the strategy, the President 

12 shall incorporate results of the evaluation under sec13 tion 6. 

14 SEC. 6. NATIONAL EVALUATION OF HEALTH IMPACTS. 

15 The Secretary, in coordination with the Secretary of 

16 Health and Human Services, shall— 

17 (1) develop recommendations for appropriate 

18 evaluation measures and criteria for a study of na19 tional significance on the health impacts of the 

20 strategies under this Act; and 

21 (2) carry out such a study. 

22 SEC. 7. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND BEST PRACTICES. 

23 The Secretary shall— 

24 (1) provide technical assistance to grantees 

25 under section 4 through cooperative agreements with 


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1 national organizations with a proven track record of 

2 encouraging Americans, especially children, youth, 

3 and families, to be physically active outdoors; and 

4 (2) disseminate best practices that emerge from 

5 strategies funded under this Act. 

6 SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro8 priated to the Secretary to carry out this Act— 

9 (1) $1,000,000 for fiscal year 2015; 

10 (2) $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2016; and 

11 (3) $3,000,000 for fiscal year 2017. 

12 (b) LIMITATION.—Of the amounts made available to 

13 carry out this Act for a fiscal year, not more than 5 per14 cent may be made available for carrying out section 7. 

15 (c) SUPPLEMENT, NOT SUPPLANT.—Funds made 

16 available under this Act shall be used to supplement, and 

17 not supplant, any other Federal, State, or local funds 

18 available for activities that encourage Americans, espe19 cially children, youth, and families to be physically active 

20 outdoors. 

Æ 


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