NMMA Waterways Access Initiative
As members of Congress travel around their districts this fall, NMMA encourages its members and recreational boating stakeholders to use the Waterways Access Initiative website as a resource during conversations about how Congress can support the recreational boating industry and marine manufacturing.
NMMA’s Waterways Access Initiative website, nmma.org/access, creates a central hub for the campaign’s policy priorities, industry data, advocacy resources and messaging around one of the recreational boating industry’s most important issues: ensuring Americans can safely and reliably get on the water.
More than 85 million Americans participate in boating and fishing each year, the NMMA reports. Recreational boating generates $230 billion in annual economic activity and supports more than 812,000 jobs across 36,000 U.S. businesses. The industry is also deeply rooted in American manufacturing: 95% of boats sold in the United States are made here, and about 93% of boat builders are small businesses.
Connecting the Recreational Boating Community
The initiative connects NMMA’s work on boater access, recreation infrastructure, conservation, marine technology and the strength of the domestic boating industry. Its policy priorities include reauthorizing the Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund, according to the organization, advancing a strong Water Resources Development Act, renewing the National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund, and modernizing fisheries management and marine conservation policies.
The Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund is a user-pay, public-benefit program funded by boaters, anglers and manufacturers. It provides more than $750 million annually for conservation and boating infrastructure, according to the NMMA, supporting state fish and wildlife agencies, recreational boating safety programs, marina infrastructure and more than 9,000 boating and fishing access points nationwide.
NMMA’s Water Resources Development Act priorities focus on protecting public boating access and investing in federal water infrastructure and marinas. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recreation sites include 400 lake and river projects, 3,732 boat ramps and 108,000 marina slips. NMMA supports allowing the Corps to reinvest recreation fees at the sites where they are collected, modernizing marina lease terms and streamlining approvals for routine marina improvements.
The initiative also calls for reauthorizing the National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund, which expired in September 2025. Reauthorization could help address deferred maintenance and keep boat launches, recreation areas, water systems and other public access assets safe and reliable.
