Utah State Parks Free Admission for a Veteran With a Disability

The cheapest rating to use in Utah. There is no percentage floor at all, which makes this the one benefit in this file that a veteran rated 10 percent, or even 0 percent with a current rating decision, should check first. The statute, which is one sentence. Section 79-4-1002: "The division shall make rules, in accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act, to grant free admission to state parks to an honorably discharged veteran who: (1) is a resident of the state; and (2) has a current service-connected disability rating issued by the United States Veterans Benefits Administration." Three conditions and no fourth. Honorably discharged. Utah resident. A current service-connected disability rating issued by the Veterans Benefits Administration. The section names no percentage, so any current rating satisfies paragraph (2). The Department of Veterans and Military Affairs booklet confirms it in terms, referring to a Summary of Benefits letter "showing Utah residency or ANY disability rating". Note "honorably discharged" rather than the general definition's "honorable or general". On the face of section 79-4-1002 a general discharge does not satisfy it, which is narrower than most Utah provisions. Whether the division reads it that way in practice is worth asking at the gate. The section was enacted by chapter 376 of the 2024 general session, and section 79-4-207, subsection 2, paragraph (b), enacted by chapter 153 of the 2025 general session, separately requires the division to "implement a program for veteran access to state parks as described in Section 79-4-1002". So the programme is mandatory on the division twice over. What the pass actually covers, from the Division of State Parks. It is called the Veterans With Disabilities Honor Pass. It is free to a qualifying veteran. It covers day-use admission for "the veteran and up to seven guests traveling in the same vehicle". Camping is not included. The seven-guest provision is generous and it is not in the statute. Section 79-4-1002 grants "free admission to state parks to an honorably discharged veteran" and says nothing about companions. The division has read it as a vehicle-based day-use entry, which is how Utah day-use fees are charged, and the practical result is that a family of eight enters on one veteran's pass. That is worth knowing before you plan a day out. The camping exclusion is also administrative rather than statutory, and it is the limit most likely to disappoint. Utah state park camping fees are charged separately from day use and the pass does not touch them. What documentation you need. The division asks for "a current Summary of Benefits letter issued by the Department of Veteran Affairs". That letter is downloadable from VA.gov and is the same document several other Utah benefits accept. The 2026 status, which matters right now. The division states that "The Honor Pass system is currently undergoing digital upgrades. Access remains fully active," that existing 2025 pass holders may continue using their passes at all state parks during the update, and that new applicants can present VA documentation at park gates for immediate free entry. The department's booklet puts it slightly differently and adds a detail: it refers to a new pass "pending final federal approval", says to continue using the 2025 Veterans with Disabilities Honor Pass and a valid VA Summary of Benefits letter until the official rollout, and states that "The Benefits Letter will remain a valid entry method even after the new pass launches." So the operative advice for the rest of 2026 is simple: carry the Summary of Benefits letter. It works now, it works at the gate without a pass, and both the division and the department say it will keep working after the new pass arrives. Where to get the pass when it exists. The division has issued it at "select locations across Utah", including park gates and participating offices, historically the region offices and the main Salt Lake City office and most individual parks. One caution about the state's own links. The Division of State Parks page at stateparks.utah.gov/resources/military/ currently issues a permanent redirect to a staging server rather than to the production site, so a veteran following that link may land somewhere that is not the live page. The working page is the park passes page at stateparks.utah.gov/park-passes/. If a link from a state site takes you somewhere that looks like a test environment, go to the park passes page directly. How this compares with the hunting and fishing discount. Section 23A-4-302 gives a discount rather than a waiver, and the Division of Wildlife Resources requires 20 percent. This section gives free entry and requires no percentage. A veteran with a low rating who was turned away from the licence discount should not assume the same answer applies here.