Economic Contributions of Recreational Fishing Within U.S. States and Congressional Districts

Recreational angling constitutes one of the largest components of outdoor recreation in the U.S., having generated over $49 billion in retail sales in 2016 (USFWS, 2016), and contributed $125 billion to the national economy (ASA, 2018). At the state level, anglers spent $41.8 billion within the states where they live and $7.9 billion beyond the borders of their home state. The spending by residents supported 802 thousand jobs worth $38 billion in wages and income. These economic effects are also important at smaller scales. In this study we estimate the contributions that anglers make to their respective state economies based on their residence in each of the 435 U.S. congressional districts. Results are presented at the state level (Table 1) as well as the congressional district level (Table 2).