IN YOUR COMMUNITY:

Jobs

Jobs Home

Find a Job

Job
Seeker Tools

Employer Tools

Post a Job

More »

Autos

Autos Home

New Car Pricing

Used Cars

Research

Motorcycles

Classic Cars

Find A Dealer

Place An Ad

More »

Real Estate

Real Estate Home

Homes

New Homes

Rent

Foreclosures

Commercial

Place An Ad

More
»

Rentals

Rentals Home

Apartments &
Communities

Commercial Leases

Place An Ad

More
»

Classifieds

Classifieds Home

Pets

Garage
Sales

For
Sale

Celebrations

Autos

Jobs

Real Estate

Rentals

Place an Ad

Obituaries

Obituaries
Home

FIND&SAVE

Local Businesses

Find A Business

Food
& Dining

Retail
Shopping

Health
& Medicine

Personal
Care

Entertainment

Real
Estate

Automotive

Claim Your
Business

More
»

Place An
Ad

5-day
| Traffic

Oregon

Twitter Facebook RSS

Sign
in | Join

OregonLive.com

Sign
in

News

News

Follow us:

Twitter

Facebook

RSS

Loading headlines...

News Home »

Featured

Loading headlines...

All News Topics » | All News Forums »

More ...

Education

Opinion

Environment

Pacific
Northwest

Health &
Fitness

Photos

Steve
Duin

Politics

Obituaries

Road
Conditions

The Hillsboro
Argus

US & World

The Oregonian

Weather

Business

Business

Follow us:

Twitter

Facebook

RSS

Loading headlines...

Business Home »

Featured

Loading headlines...

All Business Topics
»

More ...

Business
News

Playbooks
& Profits

Complaint
Desk

Silicon
Forest

Front Porch

Small Business
News

It's Only Money

Window
Shop

My Economy

Stock Market
Report

Business
Newsletters

Tax Q & A
Blog

Business
Public Blog

US
& World

Sports

Sports

Follow us:

Twitter

Facebook

RSS

Loading headlines...

Sports Home »

Featured

Loading headlines...

All Sports Topics » | All Sports Forums
»

More ...

Blazers

NCAA

Canzano

Pac-12

Beavers

Pilots

Ducks

Thorns

Golf

Timbers

MLB

Track &
Field

NBA

Vikings

NFL

Winterhawks

H.S.
Sports

High School
Sports

Follow us:

Twitter

Facebook

RSS

Loading headlines...

High School Sports Home
»

Featured

Loading headlines...

All High School Topics
»
All High School Forums
»

More ...

Scores
& schedules

Football

Find your
school

Boys
Basketball

Latest
news

Girls
Basketball

Forums

Baseball

Photos

Softball

Recruiting

Track
& Field

Videos

Wrestling

Entertainment

Entertainment

Follow us:

Twitter

Facebook

RSS

Loading headlines...

Entertainment Home
»

Featured

Loading headlines...

Entertainment Topics
» | Entertainment Forums
»

More ...

Books

Living

Comics &
Puzzles

Food &
Recipes

Dining

Homes &
Gardens

Events

Outdoors

Music

Parenting

Performance

Pets

TV & Movies

Travel

Local

Local

Follow us:

Twitter

Facebook

RSS

Clackamas
County

Happy
Valley

West Linn

Lake Oswego

Wilsonville

Milwaukie

Oregon City

Portland

Downtown
Portland

Southeast
Portland

North
Portland

Southwest
Portland

Northeast
Portland

Gresham

Northwest
Portland

Clark
County, Wash.

Washington
County

Aloha

North of
26

Beaverton

Sherwood

Forest
Grove

Tigard

Hillsboro

Tualatin

Sign in to OregonLive.com

Username

Password Remember me

Forgot
your username or password ?

Don’t have an account?

Register now for free, or
sign in with any of these services:

Home > Pacific
Northwest News

Budget cuts scorch Washington state parks

Published: Sunday, September 02, 2012, 4:46 PM     Updated:
Sunday, September 02, 2012, 9:44
PM

By Kari Bray, The
Oregonian The Oregonian
Follow

0

Tweet

Share close

Digg
Stumble
Upon Fark
Reddit

Share Email
Print

Enlarge
Benjamin Brink,
The Oregonian BATTLE GROUND, WASHINGTON - AUGUST
28, 2012 - At Battle Ground Lake State Park the fishing is very peaceful and
scenic even if the fish aren't biting. The lake is stocked with trout. Benjamin
Brink/The Oregonian Washington
State Parks Discover Pass drives away visitors gallery (8
photos)

While Oregon state parks' independent funding structure has allowed them
to weather the economic storm, severe budget cuts are sweeping state parks in
Washington.

A dramatic drop in general fund tax dollars, combined with
user fee revenue far below expectations, has led Washington State Parks
to make cuts including:

Eliminating about one-third of the
department's full-time positions during the past four years.

Cutting
management positions, including the entire regional level of managers.

Ending the No Child Left Inside grants program, which paid for outdoor
education and recreation activities for youth.

In the 2007-09 budget
period, state parks received $94.3 million from Washington's general fund. In
the current biennium, that allotment fell to $17.2 million.

"The system
is not sustainable at the level we're at," said Sandy Mealing, spokeswoman for
Washington State Parks.

The Washington Legislature also asked the state
parks to wean completely off state support by July 2013.

Mealing said a
state parks budget with zero state support is not only unadvisable but also
unachievable.

"There is always going to be a reason for some state
funding, because we are a state agency," she said.

For 2013-15, the
Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission
plans to request $18 million, including money for maintenance, marketing and
other programs, in general fund tax support, said Don Hoch, department director.

"We're just trying to get by," Hoch said. "We understand the budget
situation we're in right now."

Marty Brown, outgoing director of the
Washington Office of Financial Management, said it is unlikely that state parks
will be granted the full $18 million. He said Washington State Parks is one in a
long list of agencies groping for money from a tight budget.

In
Oregon

The Oregon
park system does not rely at all on general fund tax money. Instead, user
fees provide about 40 percent of Oregon Parks and Recreation's total budget.
Oregon Lottery proceeds -- parks get 7.5 percent of lottery revenue -- and RV
registration fees each account for about 30 percent of the budget, which is
$191.8 million for 2011-13.

"There haven't been the kinds of dramatic
(funding) declines that have forced drastic actions in other states," said Chris
Havel, communication and research coordinator for Oregon's state parks.

The dedicated lottery revenue in particular helps Oregon parks avoid the
cuts to maintenance and staffing seen in other state parks systems, Havel said.

Washington and Oregon both see more than 40 million visitors each year
to 117 and 241 parks, respectively.

"It's very hard to keep a system
that popular running and in repair," Havel said.

John Hoffnagle,
executive director of the Oregon State Parks Foundation, said Oregon's parks are
in better shape than any other parks system in the country.

The
foundation supplements the work of Oregon state parks. For example, while the
parks system pays for infrastructure at Cottonwood Canyon State Park, which will
open in 2013 in north-central Oregon, the foundation is raising funds for an
experience center there.

Hoffnagle said he is confident voters and
donors will continue their support.

"The state parks system is almost a
defining part of being an Oregonian," he said.

The Discover Pass

To help Washington state parks, the Washington Legislature set up
the Discover Pass in 2011. Park users now must buy a $10 day pass or a $30
annual pass.

The state parks commission projected about $32 million in
revenue from the Discover Pass during its first fiscal year. Actual revenue
amounted to less than half of that, totaling $15.7 million.

At Battle
Ground Lake State Park in Clark County, park manager Jim Presser remembers
turning visitors away on numerous summer days prior to the Discover Pass. This
summer, Presser has had one day with a full parking lot.

"It went from
zero to $10 basically overnight, and a lot of folks weren't happy with that,"
Presser said.

Mealing, the parks spokeswoman, said it is normal for the
public to object to new fees and that fee resistance usually lasts about three
years.

"Parks have never been free. They never have been, never will
be," Mealing said. "I think we owe it to the generations before us and the
generations after us to be good stewards of these natural resources."

State parks officials expect an increase in Discover Pass revenue, with
projections of nearly $43 million for 2013-15.

Meanwhile, Washington
residents can donate to state parks through the Washington Department of
Licensing when they renew driver's, business and professional licenses.
Donations have exceeded expectations, totaling $8 million rather than the
projected $5 million a year for the 2011-2013 biennium.

The cuts

Hoch, the Washington State Parks director, said the public and the
Legislature prioritize education, health care and other social services over
parks when funds are thin.

"I think we're probably not recognized as an
essential service," he said.

Closing parks is not an option. There is no
viable way to decide which parks would close, Mealing said, and closures would
cheapen the Discover Pass. So since 2008, Washington parks have eliminated or
reduced 200 full-time positions, including rangers and construction and
maintenance workers. The parks system also cut its deputy director and its three
regional managers, ended multiple educational and interpretive programs and
reduced equipment expenditures.

"If we don't get as much as we need from
the Legislature, and other revenues don't pick up, we're looking at more cuts,"
Mealing said.

Visitors to Washington parks this holiday weekend can see
the impact of the staff cuts in decreased maintenance, said Mealing.

Parks need to keep rangers on duty during peak season, from May to
September, she said. Of 189 ranger positions, 66 were cut from full-time to
five- or eight-month stints focused on peak months.

"When the parks are
not as busy with visitors, that's when our staff do maintenance," Mealing said.
"Now that we've had to reduce 66 of those positions, those positions won't be
available to help with maintenance during the offseason, which means things
don't get taken care of."

Deferred maintenance can turn into more costly
capital projects later, Mealing said.

Also, the state parks must offer
reduced camping and day-use fees for disabled veterans, low-income seniors and
foster children. These exemptions cost about $8 million from the parks' biennial
budget. Hoch contends the state needs to fund any fee exemption programs that it
mandates.

The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission will
submit its formal funding request to the state Office of Financial Management
this month.

"It's still early," Hoch said. "We're optimistic."

Kari Bray:

http://www.twitter.com/karibray

360-754-5427

Related topics: washington
state, washington
state parks

Sponsored Links

Share this story

Print Email
Story tools

More stories in Pacific Northwest News

Previous story
Run
to the Rogue relay recalls Siletz Tribes' 'trail of tears' in Oregon

Next story
Man
near Kelso falls 40 feet from tree, flown by Life Flight

Copyright 2012 OregonLive.com. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

More Pacific Northwest News

Most
Comments

Most
Recent

Pacific Northwest News stories with the most
comments in the last 7 days.

1

Port
of Portland plans $4.7 million payment to help terminal operator weather
longshore problems

Most Active Users
What's this?

Users with the most OregonLive.com comments in the
last 7 days

2

Howard

1

ziggybirds

1

elton
elliott

1

charlie3mm

1

Libby
II

Users We Love

Photographer
and contributor, 'patfitz'
Seasonal pics are a specialty for this user.

More Users We
Love

Connect with OregonLive.com
What's this?

All
Facebook & Twitter accounts »

From Our Advertisers

Advertise With Us »

Popular Tags
What's this?

About Us

About OregonLive.com

Advertise with us

Contact
Us

Jobs
at OregonLive.com

FAQ

Subscriptions

Newsletters

Text Alerts

RSS

Mix
Magazine

The Oregonian

The Hillsboro
Argus

OregonLive.com Sections

News

Business

Sports

High School
Sports

Entertainment

Living

Travel

Opinion

Obituaries

Jobs

Autos

Real Estate

Rentals

Classifieds

Local Deals

Local
Businesses

Your Regional News Pages

Clackamas
County

Clark County

Gresham

Portland

Washington
County

More Local
News

Mobile

Mobile site | iPhone, Android apps | Tablet Apps

More on OregonLive.com

Forums

Videos

Photos

Interact with us

Weather

Post a
job

Post a classified ad

Sell your car

Sell/rent your home

Sitemap &
search

Follow Us

Twitter | Facebook | Google+

Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User
Agreement and Privacy Policy (Revised
November 1, 2011)

© 2013 Oregon Live LLC. All rights reserved (About Us).
The material on this
site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used,
except with the prior written permission of Oregon Live LLC.

Community Rules
apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Contact
interactivity management.

Ad Choices