Trail Connectivity May Be in Peril

       The Rails to Trails Organization has announced that a proposed bill in the U. S. House (HR 4924) has the potential to disrupt rail trails across the country. Below is a webinar invitation from Rails to Trails to learn more. The webinar registration link and other information can be accessed on the links below. - Dianne Koch

Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025 | 2 p.m. Eastern | Webinar
Protect Railbanking Against Congressional Attack
Railbanking, established in 1983 as an amendment to the National Trails System Act, is the foundational law making possible thousands of miles of rail-trails nationwide. Recently, a bill was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives that would effectively destroy the viability of railbanking going forward, resulting in fragmented and lost corridors—and poses a threat to thousands of miles of existing rail-trails. The so-called “Rails to Trails Landowner Rights Act” was reintroduced as H.R. 4924 on Aug. 8 and includes even more damaging provisions than a previous version of the bill introduced in 2024. This bill is an unconstitutional attack on railbanking, violating Fifth Amendment rights, masquerading as a series of process improvements that are anything but.

Join RTC's policy staff on Sept. 25 at 2 p.m. Eastern for this conversation about the implications of the "anti rail-trail bill" and your role in helping to stop its progress. This is where you’ll get the most up-to-date insight into what’s unfolding. Before the webinar, you can read the full text (Control plus left click) at rtc.li/antirailtrailbill and learn more about railbanking at railstotrails.org/railbanking.