Discover Pass for state lands raised $5.2 million in first two months

[fireweed]

Discover Pass for state lands raised $5.2 million in first two months
Survey: Hikers support fees
KIE RELYEA / THE BELLINGHAM HERALD

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Discover Pass raised $5.2 million through August - two months after the fee was put into place for access to state recreation lands.

The money will go to Washington State Parks, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the state Department of Natural Resources.

The new $30 fee for an annual pass - think of it as a parking permit - began July 1 to keep state recreation lands open as the state grappled with a multi-billion-dollar budget deficit and shifted money away from those three agencies.

It was expected to raise $64 million for the three agencies for the biennium.

The results so far are pretty good for a new program, said Virginia Painter, spokeswoman for Washington State Parks.

She said the agencies have a lot more work to do to educate the public about what the pass does.

"It's the money we have to work with now," Painter said.

The revenue is being split among the agencies in proportion to their need for general fund replacement, with 84 percent going to State Parks.

Meanwhile, a recent survey conducted by a Seattle-based group that works to protect trails and hiking opportunities in the state found support for the Discover Pass among hikers - one of the biggest user groups on state lands.

Results were based on the more than 2,900 Washington residents who took its survey, according to the Washington Trails Association.

Of those surveyed, 69 percent supported the Discover Pass, while 17 percent opposed it.

And 58 percent of those surveyed said they'd pay more for the Discover Pass should state recreation lands again face closure.

"I wasn't terribly surprised by it, but I guess you could say I was pleasantly surprised," said Jonathan Guzzo, advocacy director for the Washington Trails Association, of people's willingness to pay more, seeing it as a sign of how much hikers value public lands in the state.

The association didn't ask hikers how much more they'd be willing to pay.

The survey found, not surprisingly given the ire that has been expressed over it, that 87 percent didn't like that the Discover Pass wasn't transferable from car to car.

Painter said that has been the biggest gripe from consumers as well.

But she said the fee was set up based on what people said they would be willing to pay, coupled with the revenue the agencies said they needed.

Guzzo said the trails association would work with the Legislature and the agencies to find solutions to the one-pass-per-vehicle issue.

One option could be to charge a full price for the first pass and maybe a discounted rate for the second pass, Guzzo said.

"It's a little early to say what the specific solution is going to be," he said.

The association also looked to other states for how they handle the transferable issue. Idaho and Wisconsin, for example, offer a discount for a second vehicle pass, while South Dakota charges more for a transferable pass, according to the association.

In addition to the survey of hikers, the association looked at how the Discover Pass compared to other park access fees across the country. Their findings:

• 15 states charge no fee.

• The $30 flat fee for an annual Discover Pass is on the low end, with the association saying it was a good value given that it also provides access to DNR and fish and wildlife lands - not just state parks.

• Arizona's annual fee was the country's highest at $205.

How much people are willing to pay for the Discover Pass - and whether they're willing to pay more - could come up again in the Legislature.

A budget forecast released Thursday, Sept. 15, showed that the state faces a $1.3 billion shortfall, and state agencies have been asked to put together budgets with additional cuts of 5 percent and 10 percent.

[bigtex]

Article looks like the pass will be increasing....

[Knocker of rocks]

• Arizona's annual fee was the country's highest at $205.

 

[Huntbear]

 

They got their fingers in our wallets again.. and they found a new way to get money from us.....

Well from you that are willing to pay for the pass.  Personally, I will not buy it, will not use state lands... and I have written emails stating so to the powers that be...  not that they give a rats ass about how I feel about it. 

 

[Elkaholic daWg]

Article looks like the pass will be increasing....

 Wonderful
 Maybe they can steal some more NOVA funds too. They are getting closer to that line aren't  they?

[bigtex]

Article looks like the pass will be increasing....

 Wonderful
 Maybe they can steal some more NOVA funds too. They are getting closer to that line aren't  they?

Well NOVA funds are back to financing ORV projects, but I know what you are referring to.
I guess like the article says, people in other states are paying a lot more then we are for essentially the same thing. I guess we could all be like Arizona and pay $205 for the pass 

[Special T]

I don't think this is good news, however i would like to think that at least now Hikers and Mt bikers are having to pay to play... I am however still very upset at the split of the cash..

[billythekidrock]

I agree that the split is not fair.
I do not go to state parks and I very seldom use WDFW lands (maybe a once every couple years) but I spend a ton of time on DNR lands.
 
I would like to see them split it equally or allow the purchaser to designate which agency gets the largest portion.

[BOWHUNTER45]

JUST OPEN A FEW GATES AND I quit beaching !!!!!

[bigtex]

Well I do have some "good" news in regards to DNR Law Enforcement. Earlier this summer DNR hired a retired WSP Trooper to fill the Castle Rock position (patrols DNR lands in Clark, Cowlitz, Skamania, Wahkiakum, Pacific, and Lewis Counties) that was vacated because the officer that held that position transferred to WDFW. DNR currently has two job announcements out for two brand new positions they created. The new positions will be in Bremerton and Vancouver and the Officer will be based out of Kitsap and Clark Counties. This is a big improvement to DNR Enforcement. For example the Officer that currently handles Kitsap and Mason Counties also handles King and Pierce and rarely is able to go to Kitsap and Mason because of the use in King/Pierce. The addition of these two new positions will be a great improvement in DNR lands enforcement in Kitsap, Mason, Clark and Skamania Counties.

I also want to mention how the funding of DNR Enforcement is different then most other government programs. DNR Law Enforcement does not get a "line item" in the state budget, basically meaning you couldn't look in the state budget and see how much is going towards DNR Enforcement. DNR Law Enforcement is essentially funded through grants and funds from DNR recreation programs that are compiled in order to create the DNR Enforcement program. A chunk is from NOVA. Discover Pass fees may also be helping fund DNR Enforcement as well.

At the federal level, uniformed positions for BLM, NPS, and USFWS are also funded this same way. Only the USFS has a "line item" in the federal budget for uniformed enforcement. However all federal land management agencies have a "line item" for agency Special Agents (detectives/plain clothes investigators).