cart path play

Question
I'm comfortable with the fact that under Rule 24 a concrete cart path is an obstruction and under DRG 24/9 so is a cart path covered with gravel, crushed shell, wood chips or similar materials.  My question concerns a bare dirt cart path which is clearly delineated as a permanent cart path or a road. I'm of the impression that if no relief is clearly stated, then there is no relief.  On the other hand my fellow committee member in our golf club says that the rules states that you are entitled to relief if your ball comes to rest on a "cart path" and it doesn't define cart path beyond that terminology, there a cart path is a cart path is a cart path.  I, in turn, point to DRG 24/12 which says that stairs not covered with an artificial surface are not an obstruction.  We'd like to be definitive before we spell out the rule to our entire club.  We are a club without a course, so there is no long-standing local rule.

Answer
Ned,

Good question. Here is the answer that should please everyone. Below is from the USGA web site.

33-2. The Course
a. Defining Bounds and Margins
The Committee must define accurately:
(i) the course and out of bounds,
(ii) the margins of water hazards and lateral water hazards,
(iii)ground under repair, and
(iv)obstructions and integral parts of the course.

It is clearly up to the committee to define the obstructions including bare dirt cart paths. If I were on the committee it would be my preference to play the ball as it lies (no relief). This would eliminate much discussion whether the ball is on the dirt cart path or not.

Call the course that has these dirt cart paths and see how they define them.

Thank you,

Michael Hoffman