Category: Blog Post

Comparing the Governor’s DCR FY2023 Budget Proposal The comparison below illustrates the disinvestment in state parks since 2009. The Administration account and the all-important Parks and Recreation Operations account have remained below 2009 funding levels for the past 14 years. On the other hand, the Retained Revenue account, funded by parking and campground fees, leases and other income, grew from less than $10 million to $25 million during that time. The Seasonal Workers account, used to try to make up for the 300 positions DCR lost during this period, also saw significant increases. In fact, these are the only two accounts that have seen any meaningful increase during this period. The Governor’s FY2023 proposal has taken the Retained Revenue account, the subject of much criticism during the DCR Special Commission hearings, and buried it in three other accounts. If the Administration and the Legislature want to take a real step to reform park funding, they will fund the park system directly from...

Governor's Budget Deserves Serious Consideration Doug Pizzi, Executive Director | February 8, 2022 When Governor Charlie Baker filed his FY2023 state budget last week, he proposed a major, welcome policy shift in state park funding for the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR).   Baker wisely eliminated the retained revenue account and replaced the money DCR would have to bring in from park user fees with general revenue tax dollars. Mass Conservation Voters (MCV) has long voiced concerned about the pressure on DCR to rely on user fees. Over reliance on user fees led to last year’s ill-fated decision to place parking meters on Revere Beach Parkway. After complaints from the public, including MCV, the Legislature ordered the kiosks removed and that the money they generated be used for beach maintenance. In our comments to the Special Legislative Commission on DCR, which wrapped up its report in December, MCV called for the retained revenue account to be capped at $20 million and asked for...

Enough is enough. The Legislature must adequately fund our state parks. By Chuck Anastas, Chair of MCV's Board of Directors “During the COVID-19 pandemic, the state’s park system served as an outlet for people to enjoy open space and nature, safely, away from their homes. Further, DCR plays a critical role in thinking about conservation and climate resiliency in the state as the Commonwealth continues to wrestle with the risks associated with climate change in the coming years.” Department of Conservation and Recreation Draft Special Commission Report (link) During the last week of October, the Democratic House slashed the Governor’s proposal to use $100 million out of the more than $5.0 billion American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to $25 million. The House cut the $100 million despite a $1.0 billion deferred maintenance backlog at the DCR that the Commonwealth has carried from year to year for years. Last week the Senate voted to reduce the House amount to $15 million. Unfortunately, park supporters...

MCV submits comments in response to the Draft DCR Special Commission Report October 28, 2021 Faye Boardman, Chair, DCR Special CommissionMassachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs100 Cambridge Street, Suite 900Boston, MA 02144 Dear Chair Boardman, Thank you, Chair Boardman, Commissioners, UMDI analysts and researchers, and DCR staff, for your earnest efforts to find a better way forward for the conservation and recreational needs of our Commonwealth; and for DCR to become a fully funded agency commensurate with its vast responsibilities. On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Conservation Voters and its 5,000-voter network, we offer the following comments on the draft report and for its yet-to-be-written Executive Summary. Culture Since 1892 with the founding of what would become DCR more than a century later, we have recognized our most significant asset is the public lands we jointly own and freely access. As noted in both the Draft Report and by commenters, these lands hold priceless conservation value, are crucial for our citizens’...

DCR Stewardship Council Unanimously Passes Budget Resolution To view the DCR Stewardship Council resolution, please click here.Download Sometimes what seems like a small step becomes monumental in retrospect. Just such a moment may have occurred at the July 22nd Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) Stewardship Council meeting. For the first time, the Council unanimously passed a budget resolution early enough in the state budget process to influence the Governor’s final budget released each January. Its budget priorities include: Increasing DCR’s capacity to develop partnerships with nonprofit organizations, friends’ groups, and local governments to support its mission.Fully staffing and funding the office responsible for the development of Resource Management Plans (RMP).Supporting a new line item for a public communication and outreach campaign for state parks and programs. The Council’s interest in strengthening partnerships with park organizations has run through many Stewardship Council meetings over the past two years. This priority is welcome news for everyone who cares about a state park and wants to donate...

We have multiple opportunities to help our parks, just do it by Doug Pizzi On June 17th, the Baker Administration announced a plan to spend $2.8 billion of the state’s $5.3 billion in federal COVID-19 relief funding, including a sorely needed $100 million on state park infrastructure. Proving the Legislature can act extremely quickly when it wants to, 11 days later Gov. Charlie Baker signed a bill scrapping his plan and putting $4.9 billion of the relief funds into a special account legislators will control. Lawmakers will eventually dole this money out, perhaps with, perhaps without input from the governor, but have promised a public hearing process to inform spending decisions. MCV was solidly with the Administration’s plan to spend the $100 million on park infrastructure as a good down payment to reverse decades of not so benign neglect of our vitally needed, historic state park system. We also suggested that Baker steer some of the federal money from other categories he outlined,...

Massachusetts parks have a historic legacy worth saving One of the critical lessons this pandemic has taught us is that our open spaces, particularly public open spaces, are critical to our physical and mental health. From early on and continuing through the worst of COVID-19’s impact, writer after writer after writer from across the nation extolled the virtues of our great outdoor spaces. This was particularly true for people who live in more densely populated cities and suburbs. Closer to home, the state Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) kept everything it could safely keep open available to the public, even as other states and non-profits closed their parks. The result was that our forests, parks and beaches became even more of a refuge to the public, with some DCR facilities seeing upwards of a 300 percent increase in use. In order to cope with what can only be described as an onslaught, DCR developed real time communications tools to let people...