Problem and Solution

We got our copy of Texas Parks and Wildlife Magazine and inside on the very first page is a sort of State of the State Parks Address and the long and short of it boils down to this:
1: They get this much money at the beginning of the year: 51 million dollars

2: They pay back this much money in entry fees and sales per year: 32 million

3: Actual cost to the state per year: 19 million dollars for 124 parks and historical sites

4: Which averages out to a cost of 170,000 per park per year or 1 cent per park per Texan

5: The Texas Parks and Wildlife Dept had to fire 39 employees and eliminate 40 open positions this year due to budget constraints.

Texas ranks 48th or 49th in Park spending.

One Penny Per Park? What a bargain! I mean if I have a Park pass (60$ per year) I can visit every single state park and historcal site in texas at a cost of 61.24$ to me. However I have a son so it costs him a about a buck and a quarter too. So that's 62.48$ as park passes covers everyone in the car.

I'd pay two bucks a year in addition to the parks pass. Hell I'd cut them a two dollar check right now! And I can't think of anyone I know (including die hard Republicans who only own red ties and wear them to work every day) that wouldn't. That'd be a 61% increase in their budget.

Now lets see who I can talk into starting a Pennies for Parks grassroots lobbying campaign.

First up the state chapter of the Sierra Club and then Kinky Firiedman. Why Kinky? Why not?

I'll let you know how it goes.