At a time in which the Texas Legislature wants to give back billions of tax dollars, friends of the state’s parks system continue to battle for the revenue that rightfully should be going toward the purchase, construction and upkeep of parks.

It seems a popular notion with everyone, except maybe legislators.

In 1993 the 73rd Legislature made a healthy move and changed parks funding from a then dwindling penny-a-pack tax on cigarettes to a more robust general sales tax on selected sporting goods items. The thought was that the increased revenue would help pull the park system out of the gutter and make it a gem that attracted both Texans and out-of-state visitors.

But the tax proved too profitable and legislators couldn’t keep their hands off the tens of millions generated so they immediately started diverting funds, leaving parks with only pennies on the dollar.

Making matters worse, parks officials were forced to divvy up the money among an assortment of funds instead of putting it where it was needed most.

Through the years parks supporters have gone back to Austin every two years seeking a bigger piece of the pie. Without adequate money for staffing and maintenance the number of sites managed by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has shrunk. Today there are 95 sites in the system covering more than 650,000 acres.

In 2007 it looked like headway was being made. New legislation freed up to 94 percent of the tax funds, which had grown to more than $100 million a year, to the park system. The other 6 percent was dedicated to the Texas Historical Commission, the agency that took on most of the historical sites that had been a part of parks for years.

But there were still strings. Only 74 percent would go to the State Parks Fund. Another 15 percent would go to another account administered by TPWD that funds local parks and another 1 percent would go toward capital construction. New to the equation was 10 percent being offered to big cities and counties for park grants.

All of that would have been palatable, but again the Legislature designated exactly how much could be taken from the sales tax. Parks got about 36 percent of the total. The remainder went back into the state’s general fund.

It is now the 84th Legislature and the call has come again to free up the funds that were intended for state parks. Supporters come armed with a statewide survey that shows continued strong support for the park system.

By the numbers the December 2014 survey showed:

* 76 percent support the use of revenue from the sporting goods sales tax for acquiring, maintaining and operating state and local parks.

* 72 percent are opposed to the current diversion of tax revenue from parks.

* 80 percent support the use of the tax revenue to acquire additional land for a myriad of public uses from hunting and fishing to wildlife viewing, camping, hiking and kayaking and canoeing.

* 70 percent would vote for a constitutional amendment that would dedicate all of the sporting goods tax to parks.

This is the fifth time since 1999 that this survey has been taken. In both good economic times and bad, support across the board just keeps getting stronger.

“Another study looked at the economic value that parks bring in to host communities. It showed that there was $774 million left behind in those communities,” said Brent Leisure, TPWD Parks Division Director.

That return comes on an annual investment of $146 million for parks operations and capital construction.

Some cite that only about 10 percent of that economic value comes from out-of-state visitors. Leisure said that is of little consequence to the host communities.

“Some will say that is Texas dollars being recirculated. That money is critical to Daingerfield (near Daingerfield State Park) whether it comes from Houston or Arkansas,” Leisure said.

Despite continuous population growth, there was no state park land added to the system between 1993 and 2010. Since 2010 three sites equaling approximately 25,000 acres have been purchased or donated. All three await funding for design, construction and full staffing.

Even with those additions the state still ranks low nationwide in the amount of park acreage per capita, and the parks that are open often suffer from neglect.

“One of our greatest challenges is age and condition of our infrastructure. We are asking for $75 million to take care of a backlog throughout the state. If you think when the park system was built, it was in the 1930s with a second wave in early ‘70s. Those are now 45 years old, and the life expectancy of the infrastructure has far been exceeded,” Leisure explained.

As cities like Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio, Austin and even Tyler continue to grow, the great outdoors in Texas shrinks.

About 80 percent of the state’s residents are urban dwellers. Their knowledge of how bright the stars are at night in the Lone Star State are limited to what they can see from their backyard or a small intercity park.

“Since the 1970s when there was about 11 million people in the state, not only has the population swelled to 27 million, the rate of growth is expected to continue. The park system has to change and to adapt if it is going to be relevant to next generations,” Leisure said.

He added one of the most critical needs is to develop more parks with modern amenities closer to the biggest population areas.

Under early budget proposals there is a move in the Texas Senate to finally release all of the sporting goods tax revenue to the parks system. The House version is not as generous.

The state has some great getaway state parks. It needs those to be maintained in top shape, and it needs to add more within proximity of where the people live. That takes money, money that is there if the Legislature would do as the public wishes.

 

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