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| SPONSOR: | Smith | DATE TYPED: | 5/6/99 | HB | |||
| SHORT TITLE: | Transfer State Parks | SB | 18 | ||||
| ANALYST: | Woodlee (Valenzuela, Hadwiger 1/13/99) | ||||||
| Recurring
or Non-Rec |
Fund
Affected | ||||
| FY99 | FY2000 | FY99 | FY2000 | ||
| Transfer of all appropriations for State Parks to Tourism. | Recurring | General Fund
SPD Operating GGRT Federal Funds | |||
(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)
Relates to Senate Bill 19
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
LFC Files
Energy, Minerals, and Natural Resources Department (EMNRD)
Department of Game and Fish
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Bill
Senate Bill 18 would transfer the State Parks Division (SPD) of the Energy, Minerals, and Natural Resources Department to the Tourism Department. SB 18 has an Emergency Clause.
Significant Issues
EMNRD has been criticized for decertifying and closing several state parks without providing opportunities for public comments on the proposals. When citizens demanded public hearings on park decertification, EMNRD ignored citizen comments in the hearing.
Closing State Parks. In 1995, four senior EMNRD officials evaluated New Mexico state parks to make recommendations on the future utilization of each park as well as to recommend which parks should be "divested" or placed "on fallow status." Since the study was completed, EMNRD has decertified five state parks. Two state parks were transferred to agencies with no previous experience operating state parks. Four parks are either partially or entirely closed as a result of the EMNRD recommendations. Control of the former state parks has been transferred to other jurisdictions-Senator Willie Chavez State Park to the Belen Independent School District (BISD); Harry McAdams State Park to the City of Hobbs; Santa Fe State Park to the City of Santa Fe; Chicosa State Park to the Village of Roy; and Coronado State Park to the New Mexico Office of Cultural Affairs (OCA).
Today, Chicosa State Park is closed except for groups which get permission in advance from the Village of Roy. Senator Willie Chavez State Park is closed except for groups which get permission in advance from BISD. Coronado State Park has been closed since October 1998, because OCA was not provided funds to operate the campground. Additionally, Manzano State Park is closed during part of the year.
Public Participation. There was no opportunity for public participation in developing the EMNRD recommendations on future utilization of New Mexico state parks or for public comment on the study prior to implementation of its recommendations. EMNRD has also recently increased fees at campgrounds at state parks, despite opposition from campground users during public hearings on the proposed increases.
Proponents of this bill are concerned that EMNRD is not fulfilling its responsibility as steward of the state parks system and that EMNRD is not sufficiently attentive to the wishes of New Mexicans in making decisions about the state park system.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
The bill would reduce EMNRD's operating budget from approximately $40.0 million to $22.0 million and decrease its staff from 468 FTE to 194 FTE. At the same time, the Tourism's department annual operating budget would increase from $12.9 million in FY99 to about $31.0 million and staff would increase from 73.5 FTE to 347.5 FTE.
In addition to transferring SPD, it would be necessary to transfer part of EMNRD's administrative services division. The SPD contains 44.8 percent of EMNRD's budget and 54.7 percent of its staff. which would be transferred to the Tourism Department. The bill does not specify transfer of these funds or staff.
Two additional items would increase the fiscal impact of this proposed transfer: need for information systems to support the new division and the relocation of Santa Fe-based staff from EMNRD to Tourism. SPD has numerous field offices it manages throughout the state. According to EMNRD, the field offices pose a problem for computer systems that handle such common accounting functions like vouchers and receipts. In fact, the EMNRD developed division specific information systems solutions to handle these problems, but integrated the systems into the department-wide systems. To ensure a smooth transition, the Tourism Department, if it does not already operate sufficient information systems, either will have to develop new systems (with a fiscal impact of as much as $500.0) or duplicate existing systems.
The proposed transfer would have a significant administrative impact on the Tourism Department, which would experience substantial growth as a result and would become involved in a new activity. The Tourism Department currently operates nine welcome centers located around the state. The transfer would give the agency responsibility for about 30 state parks.
CONFLICT/DUPLICATION/COMPANIONSHIP/RELATIONSHIP
SB 18 relates to SB19.
OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES
Rocky Mountain states tend to locate their state park agencies in agencies similar to New Mexico's Game and Fish Department or New Mexico's Energy, Minerals, and Natural Resources Department, as opposed to agencies involved with tourism. The following is a breakdown of state park management in several western states including Arizona, Colorado, Montana, Nevada, South Dakota, and Texas.
MW:MV:DH/njw