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The original was posted on /r/arizonatrail by /u/numbershikes on 2025-08-13 15:16:23+00:00.

Original Title: The Arizona Legislature, which commonly allocates from tens of thousands to a hundred thousand or more dollars of funding for the Arizona Trail annually, has completely removed the Arizona Trail Fund from the state’s fiscal year 2026 budget.

Arizona Trail Association (ATA) blog post: https://aztrail.org/arizona-trail-fund-hacked-from-state-budget/

Excerpts:

[The Arizona Trail Fund] was established in 2006 to support trail construction and maintenance, and is matched by private donations, federal grants, and volunteer labor contributions. Over the years, the fund has received anywhere from $100,000 to $500,000, and there have been some years where no money was appropriated at all. We are disheartened to report that FY2026 (July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2026) will also be one of those years with no state funding.

[…]

These funds flow directly from Arizona State Parks & Trails to the contractors, with the ATA providing planning, oversight, logistics and staff support (no state money is provided to the ATA as we are not a state-approved trail contractor). We advocate for this funding as it directly supports our mission, and often frees up financial resources we would have spent on trail construction and maintenance for Volunteer, AZT VETS, Seeds of Stewardship, Gear Girls, and other important programs.

[…]

“It’s hard to believe that Arizona’s only State Scenic Trail and National Scenic Trail is not being supported by our state,” said ATA Executive Director Matthew Nelson. “A modest request for $250,000 is only 0.00141% of our state’s operating budget. The Arizona Trail contributes to our state’s $14 billion annual outdoor recreation economy in a big way, and our dedicated volunteers contribute more than $700,000 in labor each year. For the Governor’s Office and State Legislature to forget about the Arizona Trail Fund entirely is just embarrassing,” he said.