Sales tax or fuel tax money could give parks a permanent funding source, the 2020 plan says. The current budget for parks is $76 million, with $41 million from the state and $35 million through parks revenue.
Some of the options being considered:
> Outdoor enthusiasts could pay a 3 percent surcharge on equipment such as tents and sleeping bags, or 7 percent of the sales tax on those could be funneled to parks.
> Or, everyone could contribute, by allocating one-eighth of 1 percent of the state sales tax or 1 cent of the 20-cents-per-gallon gasoline tax to parks and recreation.
The report cites a $100 million backlog for maintenance and renovation, pointing out that many of the historic cabins and stone structures were built during the Great Depression. This is the time, the report says, "to make hard choices about which park facilities represent a drain on the system and need to be closed."
Park visitors want services such as golf courses and restaurants, said Tennessee Department of Environment & Conservation Commissioner Jim Fyke. And while some operate at a deficit, operations overall are 99 percent self-sustaining.
"No one wants to go to Fall Creek Falls and not have a restaurant, because there's no other place to eat. You do not have to spend a dime to go to a park. But if people want these services, and they do ... they pay charges."
Plan targets obesity:
The plan also addresses health issues. More than 67 percent of adult Tennesseans are overweight, and obesity-related diseases cost $2.7 billion a year, Tennessee 2020 says.
"We've got to get people outside and exercising or it's going to break our economy," said Edwin Gardner, who led the study and plan.
Tennesseans also need to get outdoors to reconnect with "our roots and culture," said Gina Hancock of the Tennessee chapter of The Nature Conservancy.
Working with the Conservancy and other groups, Bredesen's administration put together the largest land acquisition since the Great Smoky Mountains National Park was established in the 1930s. More than 200,000 acres of the Cumberland Plateau were preserved.
Commentary:
1) If park visitors want restaurants and golf courses, let those people who want those services to pay for them. Why should campers/backpackers, or drivers across the state, subsidize a small segment of the population? If golf courses and restuarants were that vital, allow entreprenuers to take the risk to build those businesses, and charge the appropriate prices to make those businesses self-sustaining. Why do tax payers need to be involved with this?
2) Why is it the governments job to get people out exercising? Ditto on the perceived "need" to get people outdoors to reconnect with "our roots and culture". To federal and state government bureaucrats: it's none of your business what we do with our personal lives. Leave us alone!
When Americans "allow" the government to "pay" for our healthcare, we're effectively surrendering control of our own lives. The nanny state will tell us that we need to exercise, stop eating certain kinds of foods, stop drinking certain beverages, stop taking part in certain activities, all under the guise of controling costs for the common good. And by the way, what is the definition of obese, and who gets to decide where that line is crossed?
3) Why is the state of Tennessee continuing to purchase lands when they obviously can't pay for them? This is a classic example of government gone wild.
If state and federal governments continue to increase taxes at every turn, we won't have any money to enjoy our parks anyway....
If you drive a car, I’ll tax the street,
If you try to sit, I’ll tax your seat,
If you get too cold, I’ll tax the heat,
If you take a walk, I’ll tax your feet.
Taxman.
- The Beatles
Jeff
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