Washington state parks facing funding crisis

With the state about to cut all funding for Washington’s
state parks system, leaders are scrambling to come up with
new ways to keep the parks open. So far, it’s not
looking good.

“We really need to remind people of the value of these
incredible state recreation lands that we have. If we
want to keep these things open, the philosophy here is ask
the people who are using it to pay,” says Virginia
Painter, spokeswoman with the Washington State Parks and
Recreation Commission.

Unfortunately, so far not enough people are willing to
pay. The system relies on revenue from the Discover
Pass,
which charges $30 a year or $10 a day to use state parks
and lands. But visitors numbers have actually dropped.
While nearly 6.8 million people visited state parks in
2010, that number dropped to only 5.6 million after the
pass went into effect in July 2011. The state has
taken in less than half the $32 million expected since the
pass took effect, according to The
Seattle Times.

“Whether it can be completely sustained on user fees, we
don’t know,” Painter says.

In a draft report on the state of state parks, there’s
plenty of talk of running parks more like a business,
calling for partnerships with local governments or
non-profits to help bridge the gap.

The report points to new revenue streams including leasing
public lands for non-recreational uses including
communication towers and utility lines, which brought in
$1.1 million last year, according to the Times.

Officials are also proposing new fee systems, including
charging premiums for peak camping times.

With the budget cuts looming, there’s hope the Legislature
will change its mind and restore funding to the parks
system. If not, many parks could fall into serious
disarray or face closure altogether. Based on the
disappointing performance of the Discover Pass, the report
says it’s clear the parks can’t survive solely on self-
funding.

The commission meets next week in Wenatchee to formally
unveil the report.