Arizona Parks and Recreation Association

Bill to Reinstate Arizona State Parks Heritage Fund Passes House Committee 8-0 ~ Please call Representative John Kavanagh

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On Monday, February 18, HB2594, a Bill to reinstate the Heritage Fund, passed unanimously in the Arizona House Committee on Energy, Environment and Natural Resources

HB2594 would reinstate the Local Transportation Assistance Fund (LTAF), which helps to fund transit services, and also the Arizona State Parks Heritage Fund, which funds parks programs, environmental education, trails, historic preservation, and more.

Both of these funds received Arizona Lottery revenues but were eliminated by the Legislature and Governor during the 2010 state budget crisis. Under this bill, both funds would receive their original allocations — LTAF would receive $9 million per year and Heritage Fund $10 million per year.

Representative Ethan Orr of Tucson is the primary sponsor of HB2594 with Representatives Juan Carlos Escamilla of San Luis, Karen Fann of Prescott, Frank Pratt of Casa Grande, T.J. Shope of Coolidge, Bob Thorpe of Flagstaff, and Bruce Wheeler of Tucson as cosponsors.

Beth Woodin of Tucson, president of the Arizona Heritage Alliance, noted, “It is heartening to see state legislators recognize the need to restore the Heritage Fund that was overwhelmingly supported by voters in 1990. Over the years, millions of dollars in Heritage Fund matching grants have developed new parks, trail systems, campgrounds, picnic facilities, and lake improvements, as well as preserved important parts of our rich cultural heritage.”

In a study conducted by the Arizona Hospitality Research & Resource Center at Northern Arizona University, it was found that direct expenditures from the Arizona State Parks Heritage Fund in 2007, the last full year of Heritage Fund matching grants, were $12.9 million spent on both land acquisition and construction related to maintenance and repair. Direct program expenditures resulted in indirect expenditures of $4.6 million and induced expenditures of $8.5 million for a total economic impact of $26.1 million. Direct expenditures resulted in 125 direct jobs, 33 indirect jobs, and 66 induced jobs, for a total of 224 jobs from the Arizona State Park Heritage Fund. Estimated total taxes for these expenditures (Local, State, and Federal) were $3.3 million.

William Schwind, vice president of the Arizona Parks and Recreation Association, stated, “It’s now our hope that the House Appropriations Committee, under the chairmanship of Representative John Kavanagh of Fountain Hills, will give HB2594 a full and fair hearing and move the legislation to the House floor.”

However, two similar bills in the last two legislative sessions were not advanced by Chairman Kavanagh. When recently asked if he would hear HB2594 in Committee, he refused. The reinstatement of the State Parks Heritage Fund is in his hands. He needs to know today that the citizens of Arizona care about this issue.

We urge you to please call or email  Representative John Kavanagh at jkavanagh@azleg.gov,  602-926-5170 and ask him to PLEASE HEAR HB2594 in House Appropriations Committee.

Arizona Heritage Fund offers a diversity of positive impacts

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[Commentary by Rich Glinski, Park Supervisor, Desert Outdoor Center at Lake Pleasant, Maricopa County Parks and Recreation Department] — While working in the Nongame and Habitat programs at Arizona Game and Fish Department, I had a first-hand opportunity to witness the benefits of Heritage dollars working for wildlife. From gathering data on little known species, to implementing needed wildlife management actions and acquiring important habitat, the Heritage Fund to me represented a means of doing great things for wildlife resources.

After retiring from the AGFD I began managing an educational facility for Maricopa County Parks and Recreation Department. The Desert Outdoor Center at Lake Pleasant has given me an opportunity to work with a great variety of interpreters and teachers, many of whom have reaped benefits for kids by involving them with Heritage projects. I have become keenly aware of the wonderful educational opportunities afforded by Heritage dollars.

And as the new and exciting world of parks and recreation has unfolded before me, my formal involvement with the professionals in Arizona Parks and Recreation Association has enhanced further my notion of the broad-reaching influence of Heritage Fund money. From acquiring park lands to providing interpretive signage, Heritage dollars seemingly are always at it, making Arizona a better place to live.

As with my work on wildlife issues, my new connections with education, parks and recreation have made me aware of the diverse array of challenges our great state faces, and how much the Heritage Fund is critical to providing opportunities to meet these challenges. This is especially true with the new economic gloom, which threatens to un-do much of the wonderful production gained by Heritage dollars thus far.

The diversity of impacts that the Heritage Program has spread across Arizona’s landscape is truly impressive. If your life meanderings have not given you the opportunity to assess this first-hand, I hope you will visit the websites of the Heritage Alliance, the Arizona Game and Fish Department, or the Arizona State Parks. Look over the accomplishments, savor them, and then please work hard to protect this opportunity.