Executive Order No. 10-41 (No. 11-17) [Vermont Outdoor Recreation Economic Collaborative]
WHEREAS, Vermont’s landscape of forests, farms and human communities and their associated
outdoor recreation opportunities are major reasons why people visit and live in Vermont;
and
WHEREAS, in Vermont, outdoor recreation accounts for 34,000 direct jobs and $2.5 billion
in consumer spending; and
WHEREAS, our natural, cultural and physical recreation assets can and should be leveraged
to sustain, grow and drive economic development in all sectors of Vermont’s economy
with particular attention to the segment that includes outdoor recreation industry
businesses that are most closely aligned with the State’s outdoor recreation brand;
and
WHEREAS, those recreation assets must be wisely managed and strengthened, not only
to grow the economic development potential of this sector, but to sustain and enhance
the value of the Vermont brand, the experience of visitors to Vermont and Vermonters’
quality of life;
WHEREAS, there exists a broad set of outdoor recreation stakeholders but no platform
for collective focus for accomplishing major efforts in this regard; and
WHEREAS, it is important to establish a mechanism to identify and engage outdoor recreation
businesses and other stakeholders to create a Vermont Outdoor Recreation Economic
Collaborative (“VOREC”) for purposes promoting prudent stewardship of State recreation
assets and marketing the outdoor recreation values and attributes of Vermont to effectively
foster economic growth.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that I, Philip B. Scott, by virtue of the authority
vested in me as Governor of Vermont, do hereby create the VOREC Steering Committee
(“VOREC Committee”), as follows:
I. Composition and Appointments.
The VOREC Committee shall be comprised of no more than fifteen members to be appointed
by the Commissioner of Forests, Parks and Recreation from inside and outside of government
in consultation with the Secretary of the Agency of Commerce and Community Development
(“ACCD”), with the approval of the Governor. The State members shall include the
Commissioner of Forests, Parks and Recreation or designee who shall serve as Chair
and the Secretary of ACCD or designee. Non-State members shall include five representatives
from companies within Vermont’s outdoor recreation industry, one representative from
a Vermont nonprofit conservation organization, two representatives from the Vermont
Trails and Greenways Council, one representing motorized recreation and one representing
non-motorized recreation, three representatives from other Vermont nonprofit recreation
organizations and two at-large members with experience in other Vermont economic development
initiatives and/or outdoor recreation planning.
The VOREC Committee may, in its discretion, establish working groups to support its
mission, drawing membership from any agency or department of State government or private/non-profit
entity. The VOREC Committee may, at its discretion, engage with private sector professionals
in order to develop and implement the goals of this Executive Order.
The VOREC Committee shall receive administrative and staff support from the Department
of Forests, Parks, and Recreation and ACCD.
II. VOREC Charge and Process.
The VOREC Committee shall be advisory to the Governor. The VOREC Committee shall
meet at the call of the Chair. The VOREC Committee shall adopt bylaws for governance
of its meetings and engagement of the greater Collaborative before July 1, 2017.
The VOREC Committee shall identify and engage a broad set of outdoor recreation businesses
and other stakeholders for purposes of creating the VOREC. The VOREC Committee shall
develop a strategy and specific action plan with measurable outcomes to, at a minimum,
address the following:
□ Contribute to efforts to market the outdoor recreation values and attributes of
Vermont to effectively foster economic growth;
□ Examine and promote laws, policies and initiatives that encourage outdoor recreation
business;
□ Strengthen stewardship of outdoor recreation resources and the organizations that
support them;
□ Mobilize the members of the VOREC to develop and implement the initiatives of the
VOREC Committee; and
□ Encourage, incentivize and guide the development of community-oriented outdoor recreation
assets increasing economic impacts.
VOREC will report all findings and recommendations to the Governor on or before September
15 of each year, beginning September 15, 2017. VOREC will advise the Governor on the
effectiveness of this Order on the development and implementation of VOREC initiatives.
III. Effective Date.
This Executive Order shall take effect upon execution.
Dated June 15, 2017.