April 8, 2009

Hinkle works on committee amendment to save state parks
'We made a very clear and concise statement to the parks commission: you will not close one park in your efforts to reduce costs,' said Hinkle

Rep. Bill Hinkle, R-Cle Elum, has stated repeatedly to state agency officials, the press, and colleagues in the Legislature that closing state parks in the midst of the state's economic hardships should not be an option.

This week in the House Ways and Means Committee, Hinkle put that conviction into action by working on an amendment that specifically forbids the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission from closing any state parks in its efforts to cut costs.

"We made a very clear and concise statement to the parks commission: you will not close one park in your efforts to reduce costs," Hinkle said.  "We're not going to tell the commission where to cut or how to balance their budget.  But we are going to draw a line in the sand and say, 'No park closures, period.'"

Hinkle said his office has been inundated with 13th District constituents imploring him to work to keep the parks open.

"State parks are sometimes the only option for families to get out and enjoy a small vacation, especially when the economy is struggling," Hinkle said.  "Families may not be able to afford that trip to Hawaii or Disneyland but would be able and willing to pack the kids up for a weekend and go to one of our state parks.  We would be doing a huge disservice to our citizens, our families and our communities if we use tough economic times as an excuse to close state parks."

Hinkle said there was going to be an amendment offered on Monday by Rep. Larry Seaquist, D-Gig Harbor, dealing with the proposed park closures but the amendment was not acceptable to both parties and left a possible tax increase to pay for state parks as an option.  Hinkle asked Seaquist to table his amendment and offered to work with him on a new one.  The bipartisan effort resulted in the Hinkle/Seaquist amendment passing the following day.  It states:

"The state parks and recreation commission shall not close any parks during the 2009-11 biennium.  By January 10, 2010, the state parks and recreation commission shall provide a report to the legislature on their budget and resources related to operating parks for the remainder of the biennium."

"I want to thank Representative Seaquist for being willing to work with me on this issue," Hinkle said.  "We both share a desire to keep our parks open and I'm grateful for his assistance in this effort."

Hinkle said the amendment specifically steered clear of telling the parks commission how to balance their budget or meet expected budget reductions.

"We don't want to get in the realm of micromanaging each agency," Hinkle said.  "But when threats are made to close state parks instead of possibly looking to deliver services more efficiently and effectively, we as elected officials have the right and the obligation to step in on behalf of our constituents.

"We need to protect and preserve the investments we've already made to our parks system before purchasing more land or making further investments to our existing facilities," Hinkle said.

The 105-day 2009 legislative session is scheduled to end on April 26.

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