Tell Your Legislators to Protect Parks and Wildlife Across Washington!

In Olympia, the outcome of the operating budget is uncertain. Unfortunately, proposed cuts could hurt the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program and parks, wildlife habitat and working farms across the state.

Contact Your Legislators Today

PILT (Payments in Lieu of Taxes) provides much-needed revenue to rural counties and it is essential to the future of the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program. The WWRP statute requires that agencies pay PILT at the openspace rate on all state-owned habitat land.

Message to Legislators: Please match the Governor's level and restore funding for PILT.

As our state's primary data source for state and local agencies, industries and organizations in setting conservation priorities, the Natural Heritage Program is critical to the ongoing success of the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program.

Over the past few years, the Natural Heritage Program has been cut from $1.378 million to only $57,000 for FY2013. At this level of funding, the Natural Heritage Program cannot continue to exist.

Message to Legislators: Please restore funding for DNR's Natural Heritage Program.

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Budget cuts in Olympia threaten the parks, wildlife habitat and working farms of Washington State. Take action to protect our natural heritage today.

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Your letter will be sent to the following people:

Tom Bugert (WWRC Staff)

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I am writing to ask that you support Payment in Lieu of Taxes and the Natural Heritage Program in the 2012 supplemental operating budget.  These programs are key not only to the future of the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program but also the protection of our nationally acclaimed system of natural areas.

Please restore funding for DNR’s Natural Heritage Program to $150,000.

Please also restore funding for PILT (payment in lieu of taxes) to the Governor's level. Her budget provides $1.17M for DFW and $3M for DNR.

• Supporting Rural Counties - WDFW and DNR pay PILT (Payments in Lieu of Taxes)to counties for state-owned habitat lands, providing much-needed revenue to rural counties.
• Statewide Benefits – WWRP projects help ranchers stay on their land, farmers grow local food and ensures that families have ball fields and state and local parks to play in.
• Outdoor Recreation Generates Revenue – Hunting, fishing, hiking and other outdoor activities contributed $8.5 billion to Washington’s economy in ’06 (OIA).
• Matching Funds – With a 68% ROI on local projects alone, every dollar the state invests puts local, private and federal funds to work in our state.

Thank you for your consideration

Sincerely,

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