In 1992, Colorado voters approved the Great Outdoors Colorado initiative, earmarking half of state lottery proceeds to protect the open space that helps make our state a wonderful place to live. Now two Republican lawmakers want to gut the program that helps buy and improve parks, trails and wildlife habitat.
The proposal to tap the open space fund came from GOP House leader Joe Stengel and state Sen. Shawn Mitchell as part of their opposition to Referendum C.
Stengel and Mitchell are out of touch with what Colorado voters repeatedly have said they want, namely more parks and open space. Indeed, if C fails, some state parks would likely close because there won’t be adequate funding to staff and maintain them.
Surely these lawmakers know the state constitution forbids using GOCO to fund other programs or even for ongoing operational expenses in the parks and wildlife agencies. In any event, GOCO couldn’t begin to close the funding gap: Referendum C would plug a $3.6 billion hole in the state budget over five years. Last year GOCO provided just $54 million in grants.
The state constitution’s TABOR provision means that while Colorado collects adequate revenue, it can’t spend enough to maintain the current level of services. So even as Colorado grows and the economy improves, the legislature has to slash basic government services. Parks compete for a slice of the shrinking pie, and their operating budgets have been cut. Referendum C asks voters to forgo TABOR rebates (but not individual income tax refunds) to fund education, health care and transportation programs, as well as parks and other needs.
Constitutionally, GOCO provides funding to buy new parks and improve existing ones. The program can’t pay for routine parks’ expenses like salaries or trash collection.
So far, GOCO has invested in 33 of Colorado’s 41 parks; added 21,265 acres of park lands, created a new park (Cheyenne Mountain near Colorado Springs); acquired buffer areas near Barr Lake in Adams County and Roxborough Park in Douglas County; built 16 park visitors centers; added hundreds of campsites; and provided 60 percent of the money for new recreation trails statewide.
Given this investment, GOCO is worried that the state won’t be able to pay for rangers and restrooms. On Sept. 30, GOCO’s board unanimously endorsed Referendum C and its companion, D. “Without immediate relief, state officials would have to start making even more massive cuts next year,” GOCO said. “Together, we must help Colorado recover from our ongoing budget challenges.” The resolution’s supporters included veteran legislator Norma Anderson and former Moffat County Commissioner T. Wright Dickinson, both Republicans who understand the challenges Colorado faces.
By contrast, Stengel and Mitchell are aligned with the radical right that wants to shrink government, even if it means pilfering from the open-space program created by voters. But Coloradans don’t want to drown government in a bathtub, they want the state to keep its head above water – cherishing the open space that makes a vital contribution to our lives in Colorado.
