On June 12, WeConservePA and the partner organizations of the Growing Greener Coalition sent an open letter to members of the Senate and House urging them to support a $80 - $100 million Healthy Outdoors For All Program as part of the 2024-25 state budget.

A copy of the letter follows--

The partner organizations of the Growing Greener Coalition, on behalf of our hundreds of thousands of supporters and together with hundreds of allied organizations across the Commonwealth, urge you to ask your leadership to include a one-time injection of $80 – 100 million into a Healthy Outdoors for All Program for the 2024-2025 budget year.

Specifically, the Growing Greener Coalition seeks a focused boost in state investment in local capital projects to achieve the rehabilitation, upgrade, and strategic expansion of local park, trail, and other outdoor spaces.

These projects will attract and leverage substantial local philanthropic dollars and volunteer energy.

Such projects, which are well-proven to deliver substantial and long-term benefits to communities, for the most part have not had access to the robust federal funding available for so many other efforts.

Investment results will include--

-- Rehabilitation, restoration, and upgrading of infrastructure heavily impacted by increased public use of parks, preserves, trails, greenways, neighborhood gardens, and other public open spaces during both the pandemic and post-pandemic era.

-- Strategic expansions of facilities to relieve overuse of facilities strained by the increased demand and expand benefits delivered to the public.

-- Greater outdoor recreational opportunities for disadvantaged communities, whether urban or rural.

-- Closure of gaps in volunteer and local government owned and managed trails and trail networks.

-- More Pennsylvanians getting the health benefits of recreating in safe and friendly spaces.

-- Expansion and improvement of quality wildlife habitat.

-- Reductions in flood damage and improved water quality.

The investment will be made via state grants to local governments and nonprofits that are vetted through DCNR’s well-established, objective, accountable system.

Click Here for a copy of the letter and the partner organizations.

Contact Your Legislator

Your email or call to your state senator and representative can deliver millions more in state dollars for conservation and recreation.

Ask your legislators to ask their leadership (that is, their respective Democratic or Republican leaders of the PA House or Senate) to include a one-time injection of $80 – 100 million into a Healthy Outdoors for All Program (HOAP) for the 2024-2025 budget year, as advocated for by the Growing Greener Coalition.

Click Here to find out how to contact your legislator!

State Budget Resource Links:

-- State Budget: Growing Greener Coalition Urges Lawmakers To Support $80 - $100 Million Healthy Outdoors For All Program; Contact Your Legislator  [PaEN]  

-- State Budget: Chesapeake Bay Foundation Urges PA Lawmakers To Reinvest In Clean Streams Fund; Citizens To Contact Their Legislators  [PaEN]

-- State Budget: PA Environmental Council Sends Budget, Policy Recommendations To PA House, Senate Members  [PaEN]

-- State Budget: PA Parks & Forests Foundation: Pennsylvania Residents Overwhelmingly Support Investments In Trails  [PaEN]

-- PUC: Act 13 Drilling Impact Fee Revenue Drops $100 Million From Last Year’s Record To $179.6 Million; Puts Hole In State, Local Budgets  [PaEN]  

-- Gov. Shapiro’s Proposed 2024-25 Budget Includes DEP Permit Modernization Initiative, Expands PFAS ‘Forever Chemical’ Testing; Expands DCNR Trails Program, PA Outdoor Corp   [PaEN]

-- DCNR Budget Testimony Reviews Funding Requests, Need For Continued Investment In Recreation, Natural Resources, Workforce Development [PaEN]

-- DEP Testimony Provides Overview Of Budget Request, Progress On Permitting, Environmental Justice, Infrastructure Investments, PFAS, Watershed Cleanup, Climate, Clean Energy Initiatives  [PaEN]

-- DEP: Oil & Gas Regulatory Program Will Be In The Red By Fall; All Sectors Greenhouse Gas Reduction Program No Go; Update On Permitting Reform  [PaEN]

-- DEP Reports ZERO Shale Gas Well Permits Under Review; DEP May Have Only 20% Of The Revenue Needed To Fund Its Oil & Gas Regulation Program  [PaEN]

[Posted: June 21, 2024]

6/24/2024