The shameful excuses promoted by some Minnesota lawmakers to not approve a bill asking voters to dedicate a portion of the state sales tax to natural resources raise a critical question:
What's the Legislature's Plan B for natural resources?
There is none.
Sadly, we've been down this road before. In 1986, Gov. Rudy Perpich convened a group called the Governor's Citizen Commission to Promote Hunting and Fishing in Minnesota. The blue-ribbon panel, ordered to come up with ideas on how to increase wildlife habitat and hunting and fishing activities, wrote in its report:
"Outdoor recreation is a billion-dollar industry that has largely been ignored ... (and) we still seem caught up in the process whereby some of our leaders don't consider hunting and fishing as a serious and important economic activity.''
The panel proposed to the Legislature an ambitious program to spend $600 million on fish and wildlife habitat and programs for the next decade, largely through an innovative program called Reinvest in Minnesota.
RIM was considered a model funding program for natural resources and was duplicated by states across the nation. But by 1998, RIM had been funded only to the tune of $129 million, falling far short of the governor's proposal.
I mention 1998 because that same year, another blue-ribbon panel by the same name released a report re-examining Perpich's original committee and the results of RIM. The 1998 panelists concluded the Legislature failed
It is now 2007. It has been almost another decade, and the Legislature fiddles while Rome burns.
Last Thursday, Gov. Tim Pawlenty's blue-ribbon panel on natural resources, the Minnesota Conservation Legacy Council, released its report.
Its No. 1 finding: "While there are many examples of success, we have lost - and continue to lose - critical natural assets.''
The report says, "The facts indicate that the extent and rate of this loss is staggering and will require urgent and accelerated investments to slow the rate of loss and to assure the sustainability of our natural resources."
The Legacy Council proposed a citizen-based Conservation Commission to help oversee the DNR and provide guidance to the governor on picking - and firing - a DNR commissioner. The council also was sharply critical of the state's lack a long-term strategic plan for funding and addressing natural-resources losses.
In its report, the council stated plainly, "Current funding strategies fail to match the challenge."
The good citizens of Minnesota are plainly aware of this problem. In the past two years, a total of 8,000 people have rallied at the Capitol under the banner of Ducks, Wetlands and Clean Water to ask the Legislature to pass a dedicated funding bill.
The bill is stalled in the Senate Tax Committee, where a handful of lawmakers are sticking to this old saw - that dedicating money for natural resources through the constitution is bad policy.
It's also bad public policy to ignore the will of the people.
The chairman of the Tax Committee, Sen. Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook, fancies himself an outdoorsman. Mounts of deer and fish decorate his office, fashioned in the manner of former Sen. Bob Lessard of International Falls.
Bakk and another northern lawmaker, Sen. Rod Skoe, DFL-Clearbrook, are positioning themselves as staunch opponents of dedicated funding.
Lessard was a champion of dedicating funding and, in doing so, was a champion for fixing what's wrong with our state. In this regard, Bakk and Skoe couldn't carry Lessard's Snoopy fishing rod.
I hope lawmakers like Bakk and Skoe, and others who are failing to uphold Lessard's legacy, have a Plan B for natural resources. So far, their legacy, and the legacy of others in the Legislature, is to fail our natural resources. They have a decades-long track record.
Outdoor enthusiasts (and voters) may have but one choice - to find new champions for their cause.
Chris Niskanen can be reached at cniskanen@pioneerpress.com or 651-228-5524.
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Minnesota Fishing Communities Discuss Dedicated Funding and its Potential Impacts
(I-Newswire) - Minnesota Anglers are sharing mixed feelings regarding the proposed Dedicated Funding Amendment due on the ballot on November 4. The bill calls for a constitutional amendment raising the sales tax 3/8th of 1 percent and dedicate the $276 million in annual revenue to wildlife habitat, clean water, parks and the arts.
After a long 10 year battle the bill has finally found the legs to make its way to the ballot. While initially excited, some outdoor enthusiasts are critical of the spending proposal. Many remember the legislation passed for the state lottery in 1990 to be the miracle fix for the environment. Profits generated by the lottery were to fund the Game and Fish Fund, Natural Resources Fund and the Environmental Fund. Much of the lottery profit has been directed away from its intended environmental funds and Minnesotans are leary that history may repeat itself with the Dedicated Funding Bill.
The fishing community has gathered to discuss the issue in recent posts on My Fishing Pals' message forum, a local Minnesota website dedicated to the free exchange of ideas on fishing related topics. While most support the bill, all want governmental accountability. While Minnesotans strive to be good stewards of the land, they hope the government becomes good stewards of their tax dollars.
My Fishing Pals ( www.myfishingpals.com ) originated in 2003 as a hobby-fishing site that welcomes Minnesota fishermen to share fishing reports, information, and other items related to fishing. In 2005 a controversial forum was created on the site so that Minnesota fishermen could address fishing and hunting issues. These controversial forums have become an avenue for hunters and fishermen to voice their opinions and concerns and, at times, defend traditional Minnesota values.
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