Environment |

Popular California State Parks programs on chopping block amid state budget woes

Update: After this story published, the California State Parks Foundation learned there is funding for the parks pass program for fourth graders tucked into proposed education funding for the upcoming fiscal year. Read more here.

California’s budget woes could kill two popular programs that help the public access state parks and beaches for free, after Gov. Gavin Newsom failed to include money for the projects in his latest proposed budget.

First on the chopping block is the California State Park Adventure Pass, which gives fourth graders and their families a free annual pass to dozens of state parks. If lawmakers or Newsom don’t find a way to add funding for that program into the state budget for the 2024-25 fiscal year before the final plan is approved this June, Rachel Norton, executive director of California State Parks Foundation, said those passes won’t be available for kids who’ll start fourth grade this fall.

Also missing from the governor’s draft plan for the coming year is money for the California State Library Parks Pass. Under that program, all Californians can use a library card to check out passes so they can avoid the typical $10 or $15 charge per vehicle to visit more than 200 California state parks and beaches. Since those passes are issued for the calendar year, Norton said the 2024 passes now in more than 1,100 public libraries throughout the state will be good through Dec. 31. But if lawmakers don’t budget new funds, she said libraries won’t get any passes for the public to check out in 2025.

While Newsom shared broad strokes Wednesday, Jan. 10, of his plan to use reserves and cut funding to climate projects and more to help close an estimated $38 billion deficit, Norton said it wasn’t clear until Thursday morning that the state parks programs were on the list.

Her team was anticipating the worst, though, after the nonprofit Legislative Analyst Office had predicted a deficit of $68 billion. So California State Parks Foundation has been gathering signatures on a petition for a couple of weeks, asking the legislature and governor to find a way to keep these programs going.

A couple thousand people have already signed on, Norton said. And supporters on the foundation’s social media sites have directed comments to Newsom, saying “don’t let free parks for kids be taken away please” and “please continue investing in parks and recreation.”

“This is a poster child of what you want a government program to do,” Norton said. “It’s so inexpensive and it’s created so much good.”

Both free pass programs launched in summer 2021. They were part of a three-year pilot project that also included the Golden Bear Pass program, which makes it easier for low-income families, seniors and tribe members to get a free annual parks pass.

Funding for the Golden Bear Pass program is still included in Newsom’s proposed budget, Norton said.

Combined, she said it costs the state an estimated $9 million a year to run all three park pass programs. So, while she said they’re still working to separate out costs for the Adventure and Library pass programs alone, Norton said it’s safe to say it would be less than $9 million to extend both of those programs for another year.

More than 48,000 fourth graders have received Adventure passes since that program kicked off, per parks data. While that program originally gave fourth graders and their families access to 19 state parks, it was recently expanded to include access to 54 parks.

Some 33,000 Library Parks passes have been sent to public libraries over the past couple of years. There were wait lists for passes at some branches at first, until the state distributed thousands more passes — along with free backpacks packed for hiking — for visitors to check out. But Norton said libraries still report that park passes are some of their most checked-out items.

A survey the parks foundation administered last year illustrated the importance of these programs, Norton said. Some 63% of participants — most of whom were lower income and not White — said cost was the main reason they hadn’t visited state parks before. But with access to a free pass, 90% told surveyors they planned to visit state parks more than seven times a year.

“These initiatives bridge this gap and should be a priority,” Norton said.

Now that Newsom has released his proposed budget, legislators will hold a series of hearings to discuss any changes they want to make. Newsom will then release a revised budget in the middle of May, with a June 15 deadline for lawmakers to pass that budget.

Parks supporters plan to push hard to get funding for these pass programs added to the budget before it’s finalized this summer, Norton said. But she said they’ll also be looking for alternative funding, including donations from philanthropists to help keep these programs alive.