The deadline for landowner enrollment into the Missouri Outdoor Recreational Access Program (MRAP) is quickly approaching. Interested landowners must submit a Landowner Application form by this Friday, January 15th. The MRAP provides $15 – $25 per acre, per year, incentive payments and habitat improvement financial assistance to participating landowners in return for allowing public access to their land for recreational activities such as hunting, fishing, and wildlife viewing. Public access on all MRAP properties is walk-in only. The standard landowner commitment period is three years, with annual renewal opportunities.
Participating landowners can choose the recreational activities allowed on their property by selecting one of the following MRAP access types: all access hunting and fishing, small game and turkey hunting, youth only hunting and fishing, archery hunting, fishing only, or wildlife viewing. All access hunting and fishing, fishing only, wildlife viewing, and youth hunting and fishing access types are open to the public year-round, whereas archery hunting and small game and turkey access types are open only during relevant legal seasons. Additionally, participating landowners are offered liability protection from Missouri’s Recreational Use Immunity Law.
Offered lands must meet minimum eligibility requirements such as being 40 contiguous acres in size (5 contiguous acres for wildlife viewing access types or 1 pond acre for fishing only access types). To be eligible for the program, MRAP properties must also consist of at least 20% quality wildlife habitat such as native grass fields, crop field buffers, or managed woodlands.
To apply for to the MRAP program, fill out the Landowner Application Form located here and email the form to
MRAP funding is provided through a U.S. Department of Agriculture federal grant. This funding allows for the additional enrollment of approximately 7,500 new
