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Financial Overview
(Update, August 2006)
State Parks budget
The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission has a total 05-07 operating budget of
$124 million. Of that:
- $74.1 million is in real dollars from the State General Fund.
- $38.7 million is in spending authority (the agency must raise
this in revenue from fees in order to spend it on basic operations).
- $11.2 million is federal funds dedicated to specific programs
such as boating safety and winter recreation.
How the State Parks budget is spent:
The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission has a total 05-07 operating budget of
$124 million. Of that:
- 81 percent on direct support of parks – includes staffing, utilities, maintenance,
supplies, visitor services.
- 11 percent on central agency operations – payroll, accounting, human resources,
employee health and safety, insurance, legal and auditing costs, information management
and facilities management.
- 5 percent on park planning, construction and lands management
- 3 percent on public information and services including public affairs, marketing,
information, reservations and enterprise (income-producing projects).
Financial challenges facing Washington State Parks
Twenty years of restricted budgets and intermittent budget cuts have resulted in some
unfortunate consequences for visitors. These consequences have included loss of interpretive
programs and personnel, a youth conservation corps program, lifeguards at beaches and seasonal
park closures. In order to continue operating and stretching the available dollars, operational
maintenance at every park in the system has been deferred, resulting in degraded facilities that
need attention and care if they are to last into the future.
According to the National Association of State Park Directors’ 2005 Annual Information Exchange,
Washington is 44th in the nation in per-visitor spending. Washington spends $1.13 per visitor,
compared with the average expenditure of $4.94 per visitor among state park systems nationwide.
While the State Parks budget seems to have increased markedly over the last few biennia, the
agency's purchasing power has not. Much of the increase in the budget has gone to dedicated
recreation programs, new responsibilities and staff cost-of-living increases. With those increases
set aside, State Parks’ budget growth supported by the State General Fund is modest. Park visitation
remains about 40 million visits a year, with the accompanying wear and tear. Meanwhile, costs over
the past 20 years have increased, along with inflation, which has risen more than 27 percent.
The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission is committed to working closely with
policymakers, including legislators and the governor, to identify a stable, dedicated funding
source that will sustain park operations while providing resources to keep these beautiful treasures
maintained for the public today and into the future.
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