Late last week, the Bureau of Economic Analysis, an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce, released national and state economic data showcasing the incredible year the outdoor recreation economy had in 2022. This analysis demonstrates outdoor recreation’s powerful and positive economic impact on the U.S. economy and jobs as the nation continued to rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic and Americans continued to prioritize time outside.
These new government data show outdoor recreation generated $1.1 trillion in economic output, comprised 2.2 percent of U.S. GDP, and supported 5 million jobs — 3.2 percent of all employees in the country.
“If there’s one thing to take away from today’s BEA presentation, it’s this: The state of the outdoor recreation economy is strong, and sustained investment in outdoor recreation and our shared public lands and waters pays dividends for our local and national economies and quality of life,” said Jessica Turner, president of the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable. “Our industry continues to provide benefits to communities across the country — big, small, urban, and rural alike. To ensure that this success is sustainable and that our public lands and waters will continue to be accessible to all Americans for generations to come, we will continue to work together with leaders on the passage of America’s Outdoor Recreation Act by the end of this year. We are thrilled to once again see the data reflect what we hear every day, that outdoor recreation is not a nice-to-have — but a necessity for healthy people, places, and economies.”
The new data can be seen online here.
