Lawmakers must agree to help

[Source: Arizona Republic Editorial, 2/4/2012] – Lawmakers: Take a hike. We mean that in the nicest possible way. You see, our elected officials have been out of step with their constituents. A few hours under a big-sky horizon or a serenade by the wind through some saguaro needles might help them get in touch with those they represent.

Arizonans responded to a recent poll with resounding support for conservation and the state parks.

Yet since 2008, lawmakers have swept $81.6 million from Arizona State Parks. They’ve cut out all state support from the general fund. In addition, the $10 million a year in Lottery money that used to go to the parks, part of the voter-approved Heritage Fund, was eliminated. Completely and permanently. Even the money that the parks raise on their own through user fees was routinely raided.

One positive move is House Bill 2362, which says revenue from park user fees, concessions and other revenue generated by the parks should be used for the parks. The bill passed a House committee unanimously this week. It’s important, but it’s not enough. The years of reduced funding have seriously impacted what the State Parks Board can do.

This does not just impact walks through magnificent landscapes or tours of historic places. The state parks were set up in the late 1950s by forward-looking lawmakers as an economic engine for rural Arizona. They spur tourism to rural communities, drawing more than 2 million visitors a year. Those tourists spend in gas stations, restaurants, shops and hotels.

What’s more, Heritage Fund grants through the Arizona State Parks Board went well beyond the state system to aid cities with outdoor recreation, fund historic preservation and maintain trails throughout the state. That money is gone now. The loss will be felt statewide.

These things matter to Arizonans. They also matter to those who are measuring our state’s quality of life when looking to relocate or set up business. Arizonans get this. A recent poll showed that 87 percent of Arizonans say funding parks should be a priority — even in tough economic times. The “State of the Rockies” report released this week also found that 78 percent of Arizonans think environmental stewardship and a healthy economy are compatible. Pitting one against the other is obsolete.

State lawmakers faced tough budget decisions in recent years. But Arizonans clearly do not want cuts to the state parks to be permanent. This poll, released by the Colorado College, was conducted by two polling firms, one that primarily does work for Republicans and another that usually works for Democrats.

Forty-one percent of respondents said they considered themselves to be conservatives — more than any other single category. Support for conservation was strong across the political spectrum.

Conservation is not a right or left issue to Arizonans. It’s a center-of-the-trail issue. Lawmakers need to get in step.

Bill to protect Arizona State Parks revenue advances

[Source: Jessica Testa, Cronkite News Service, 2/3/2012] –A bill that would protect Arizona State Parks revenues from budget sweeps and allow the agency to use the money for operations took its first step Thursday in the state House. The House Agriculture and Water Committee unanimously endorsed HB 2362, which Rep. Karen Fann, R–Prescott, proposed in response to the massive budget cuts to Arizona State Parks.

The Legislature has swept $82 million from the agency since 2008. That money not only funded the operations and maintenance of the state’s park but also funded grants for municipalities to develop and sustain community parks and trails. Since 2010, many state parks have had to temporarily close due to budget constraints before returning to at least limited operations. In some of those cases, communities agreed to provide money and personnel to reopen parks.

In 2009, the Legislature removed Arizona State Parks from its general fund budget altogether and told the agency to start acting like a business, Fann noted. Now, like any other business, the agency should be able to keep its own revenue without the threat of sweeps, she said. “When we start sweeping funds to the extent that they’re having to close down, what have we done?” Fann said in an interview.

Seven of the nine committee members sponsor the bill, including the chairman, Rep. Russ Jones, R–Yuma. The Arizona State Parks Board strongly supports the bill, said Jay Ziemann, the agency’s legislative liaison. Ziemann explained that 84 percent of state parks sit on land that isn’t state-owned and that the Bureau of Land Management owns a majority of that, he said. “BLM has asked that we protect the funds we generate,” he said.

The approval sent the bill to the House floor by way of the Rules Committee.

Celebrate Arizona’s Centennial Through Conservation!

More than 100 Conservation Advocates Meet with State Legislators for Environmental Day at the Capitol.

January 31, 2012, Phoenix, AZToday at the Arizona State Capitol, more than 100 people from 25 different legislative districts and representing more than 20 groups met with their state legislators in support of environmental protection and conservation programs.

Volunteer advocates asked legislators to support adequate funding for State Parks and to specifically support legislation sponsored by Representative Karen Fann (R-1) that allows parks to keep revenue generated from the parks to support the park system.

“Our state parks deserve to be open, public, and keep the money they earn at the gate from visitors, said Bret Fanshaw with Environment Arizona.  “We hope the legislature will pass Representative Fann’s bill in good faith that state parks will be protected in this year’s budget and into the future.”

Conservation of state trust lands has long been a key priority for most Arizona conservation groups. While there is no comprehensive measure on the table to do that, advocates asked legislators to support conserving state trust lands and to support the bills being promoted by Senator John Nelson (R-10) to facilitate limited and transparent land exchanges for better management of state trust lands and public lands. They asked the legislators to refrain from trying to swipe the last of the Land Conservation Fund, a voter-protected fund that supports conservation of state trust lands and for which voters again expressed support on the 2010 ballot.

“We need to preserve certain state trust lands to save their natural resources, open spaces, wildlife habitat, and historic/geologic features so that our communities now and in the future have those treasures,” said Ann Hutchinson, Executive Vice President, North Country Conservancy – Daisy Mountain Preservation Effort. “The values go way beyond the obvious beauty of the land and the opportunities to recreate. The preserved open spaces have economic value. Businesses and residents look to preserves and parks to raise and maintain a high quality of life. Homes and land surrounding parks and preserves have higher value.”

Keeping funding for the Arizona Water Protection Fund was also a key issue for many advocates. The Arizona Water Protection Fund is the only dedicated funding source to protect and restore riparian habitats in Arizona. In 2011, the Legislature voted to permanently eliminate the general fund appropriation for the program.

Also on the priority list for advocates was a measure sponsored by Representative Steve Farley (D-28) that reinstates both the Heritage Fund and the Local Transportation Assistance Fund, which helps to fund transit. Prior to the Legislature’s elimination of the State Parks Heritage Fund as part of the FY2011 budget, these dollars helped fund natural areas, historic preservation, and local and regional park programs.

“An additional measure, HCR 2047, sponsored by Representative Russ Jones, is a referral to the voters for the 2012 election and would restore the language and funding of the Parks’ side of the Heritage Fund,” said Janice Miano, Director of the Arizona Heritage Alliance. “With the success of either measure, the voters’ Heritage Fund would once again be whole and functioning, providing countless jobs, community pride, and potential for increased tourism to both city and rural areas.”

Group leaders expressed concerns about the plethora of anti-environmental legislation, much of it aimed at ignoring or weakening federal environmental laws and land protections. Among them are bills that seek to control national forests and other public lands, measures whose intent is to assert total control of air and water and thus ignore the provisions of the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species acts.

“We need our state legislature and governor to step up to strengthen Arizona’s environmental protection laws, rather than seek to ignore or weaken the safety nets for clean air and clean water, as well as our endangered plants and animals,” said Sandy Bahr, Chapter Director for the Sierra Club’s Grand Canyon Chapter. “Without the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and Endangered Species Act, there would be few, if any, protections for these important resources.”

Rural lawmaker seeks halt to state sweeping Arizona State Parks revenues

[Source: Jessica Testa, Cronkite News Service, 1/18/2012]– Arizona State Parks would be able to protect the revenue it raises from budget sweeps and use it for park operations under legislation proposed by a rural lawmaker. Rep. Karen Fann, R-Prescott, whose district is home to five state parks, said it was “penny wise and pound foolish” for the Legislature to cut the agency’s funding so drastically over the past few years. “Our state parks contribute to jobs and economic development. Especially in rural areas, they’re the ones bringing in business to local restaurants and hotels,” said Fann, the author of HB 2362.

The bill would create a fund allowing Arizona State Parks to keep all of the money generated from gate fees, concession fees, souvenir sales and all unconditional gifts and donations not specified for particular projects. The money would go toward operation and maintenance costs for the entire parks system. The state wouldn’t be able to pull money from the agency to help balance its budget, as it has done in the past, Fann said. “We’re asking the Legislature that we make sure, from here on out, that we don’t touch their fund,” she said. “Hands off this one. No sweeps of this one.”

The fund would not only protect park budgets but also ensure that Arizona State Parks is following rules set by the federal Bureau of Land Management, said Arizona State Parks Assistant Director Jay Ziemann. Many of the state’s larger parks sit on land that the federal government has transferred to the state at little to no cost as part of the Recreation and Public Purposes Act. These parks have entered into various financial partnerships with private entities, such as concession companies, Ziemann said.

The Bureau of Land Management requires that all money generated by these parks be reinvested into the parks, not transferred to the state. Without the protection of the parks’ funds, the public-private partnerships would also not be eligible for renewal.

Arizona State Parks hasn’t received money from the state’s general fund since 2009. Meanwhile, more than $15 million has been swept from the agency’s revenues, Ziemann said. “The Legislature directed the Arizona State Parks Board to act like a business, to go out and survive on their revenues,” Ziemann said. “Since then, they’ve essentially stolen money out of the till.”

Fann said her district’s parks brought in more than 500,000 tourists and $1.8 million last year, supporting 916 jobs. “It could have been much worse, if not for the municipalities who stepped up to the plate and contributed a little money from their funds to help minimize the impact of the sweeps,” Fann said.

Rep. Russ Jones, R-Yuma, one of the nine primary sponsors of HB 2362, said that though partnerships with companies have helped raise park revenues, the state’s parks should not become “private retail venues.”

“Every one of our parks is a jewel and we should take pride in how they look and how they function,” Jones said.