UPDATE: June 12, 2009

The Budget Conference Committee took up the issue of the state parks budget on Thursday, June 11, but did not take action and held the item "open" until next week.  At this time, we believe they will be revisiting the issue and possibly taking the item up for a vote on Monday.

WE NEED YOUR HELP!  Please send an email to the budget conference committee members, urging them to take actions to provide funding that will save our state parks. 

Our alert will automatically send a message to all of the Legislative Budget Conference Committee Members:

• Assemblymember Bob Blumenfeld (D-Van Nuys)
• Assemblymember Kevin De Leon (D-Los Angeles)
• Assemblymember Noreen Evans (D-Santa Rosa), Chair
• Assemblymember Roger Niello (R-Sacramento)
• Assemblymember Jim Nielsen (R-Biggs)
• Senator Denise Ducheny (D-San Diego), Vice-Chair
• Senator Bob Dutton (R-Rancho Cucamonga)
• Senator Mark Leno (D-San Francisco)
• Senator Alan Lowenthal (D-Long Beach)
• Senator Mimi Walters (R-Laguna Hills)

Sample Letter for Campaign

Dear [ Decision Maker ] ,

I urge you to take action to avoid the closure of 220 state parks. Cutting the entire General Fund allocation for state parks will be devastating and will shut the doors to tens of millions of Californians who rely on state parks for outdoor recreation and vacations and weaken much-needed tourism revenue for the state.

This proposal couldn't come at a worse time for Californians. In these economic times, Californians are using state parks more, not less. Camping reservations for 2009 have already logged 25,000 reserved nights, compared to slightly over 20,000 nights in 2008 and over 19,000 in 2007. As more residents of this state choose high-value, low cost options for spending their financial resources, this proposal adds yet another obstacle to California families looking for relief in these difficult times.

Impacts to the state will go far beyond simply a $143 million 'savings' to the state's General Fund. Local economies in many areas of the state, particularly rural, rely on state park visitors to generate local economic activity that keeps small businesses alive. A recent report by CSU Sacramento found that park users, on average, spent $57.63 per visit. Across the system, this amounts to a more than $4.2 billion in positive economic impacts, impacts that will be lost if the parks are closed. This is exactly the wrong time to be proposing to eliminate the state's core commitment to state parks.

California's state parks were set aside precisely to safeguard resources and opportunities that would not otherwise be available without the strong support of the public sector. These 279 state parks are part of the public good, which requires a stable and consistent investment by every generation, to ensure their availability for the next generation. Our state parks system is a legacy with which we have all been entrusted.

I strongly urge you to seek creative solutions that provide adequate revenue to keep our state parks open and accessible to all Californians.

Sincerely,

Campaign Launched:
June 12, 2009