Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation

February 08, 2011

Dan Keefe
518-486-1868

Testimony Before the Joint Fiscal Committees of the State Legislature on the FY 2011-12 Executive Budget

Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation
Acting Commissioner Andy Beers
February 8, 2011

Senate Finance Chair DeFrancisco and Assembly Ways & Means Chair Farrell, thank you for the opportunity to be with you today to discuss Governor Cuomo's Executive Budget proposal for State Parks for Fiscal Year 2011-12. Thank you also Senator Little and Assemblyman Englebright, Chairs of the Tourism & Parks Committees, as well as other members of the Senate and Assembly here today.

I am representing State Parks today as Acting Commissioner, having served in this role since last October. Governor Cuomo recently announced he will nominate Rose Harvey as the next State Parks Commissioner. Ms. Harvey, who expects to begin working later this month, brings a wealth of experience in parks and environmental issues to our agency, and she looks forward to working with you and your colleagues during this legislative session.

In his State of the State Address and Executive Budget presentation, Governor Cuomo forcefully articulated the severity of the fiscal challenges facing New York State and the need to right-size and redesign how government provides services to the people of our state. Governor Cuomo's message has been crystal clear - maintaining the status quo is simply not an option. State spending over the past ten years has grown at more than double the rate of inflation. We can no longer spend beyond our means.

We at Parks are prepared to do our part in the budget while ensuring the continued operation of our facilities.

As all of you know, New York's parks and historic sites are among New York's great assets. State Parks has been entrusted with the care of 213 state parks and historic sites, which include many of the state's most iconic landscapes - treasured places like Niagara Falls, Jones Beach, Bear Mountain, Green Lakes, Saratoga Spa, Allegany, Bethpage, Riverbank, Orient Point, Letchworth, and Hudson Highlands State Parks. The system also includes 35 historic sites that preserve and interpret critical elements of New York's culture and history - including Washington's Headquarters, Olana, Fort Niagara, Ganondagan, and the Darwin Martin House.

For more than a century, New York has invested in developing world-class park facilities, and today we have the most developed state park system in the nation. Our park system encompasses 5,000 buildings, 8,355 campsites, 817 cabins, 53 swimming pools, 76 swimming beaches, 29 golf courses, 27 marinas, 40 boat launch sites, 18 nature centers, more than 1,350 miles of trails, 106 dams, 640 bridges, hundreds of miles of roads, and hundreds of historic structures listed on the State and National Registers of Historic Places.

We are incredibly fortunate and all benefit from the time, energy, and money that have been invested in these resources over the years. New York's parks and historic sites are gifts given from one generation to the next. And this team at State Parks will continue to care for and improve upon these gifts in the next fiscal year, while managing the ten percent reduction in State Operations Funding required of all state agencies as part of closing the state's $10 billion deficit.

I am confident that the ten percent reduction can be achieved without requiring new closures of state parks or historic sites by reevaluating our operations to identify additional efficiencies, eliminating redundancies, and examining how savings from actions taken in the current fiscal year will help us in the next fiscal year.

For the last two years, State Parks has undergone consistent review and faced many challenges, proving that we can do more with less and that in crisis there is also opportunity. Our management of past budget reductions has made us a more flexible, innovative, and efficient institution. When faced with insufficient resources to maintain a facility, we didn't just shutter the building or lock the park. Instead we looked for synergies and partners in local governments, state and federal agencies, and private organizations, and we were able to keep our parks and facilities open to the public.

In the past year, we have reached agreements with local governments to operate Woodlawn Beach State Park in Erie County, Beechwood State Park in Wayne County, and Oak Orchard Boat Launch in Orleans County. Ownership of Empire Fulton Ferry State Park and the undeveloped South Beach property were transferred to New York City. And we reached an agreement under which the National Park Service is operating Oriskany Battlefield and Steuben Memorial State Historic Sites. We will continue to forge partnerships and find other creative solutions to better serve New Yorkers in the next fiscal year.

In response to the Governor's call for a fresh look at how government operates, State Parks is initiating a comprehensive review of the agency's operations to identify opportunities to achieve cost efficiencies by redesigning the way we do business. Potential areas of savings that we will continue to explore include:

• increased partnerships with local governments and non-profit organizations and exploration of opportunities for greater private sector involvement in state park operations;
• collaborative efforts and shared services with ESDC, DEC, DOT and other sister agencies;
• efforts to increase fundraising from individuals, foundations, and corporate sponsors; and
• technology investments that can boost agency productivity.

The 2011-12 Executive Budget contains $25 million in state funding for capital rehabilitation and improvement projects in our State Parks and Historic Sites:

• The budget makes $17.2 million available for State Park Infrastructure Fund (SPIF) capital projects, which is the same amount provided in 2010-11.
• The budget recommends $16.2 million from the Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) for capital "Stewardship" projects, of which $8.1 million is allocated to OPRHP (the other half of the Stewardship funds would be allocated to DEC). Given the State Park System's substantial capital rehabilitation needs, the EPF Stewardship line is a critical source of funding for OPRHP's capital program.
• The budget also provides appropriation authority for OPRHP to expend capital funds received from federal sources, mitigation projects, and private contributions.

You may recall that during fiscal years 2008-09 and 2009-10, State Parks received a total of $85 million of bonded "State Parks Capital Initiative" funds for park and historic site revitalization projects. I am pleased to report that all of these funds have been fully deployed, allowing the agency to complete hundreds of vitally important facility and infrastructure rehabilitation projects.

The Executive Budget contains $134 million for Environmental Protection Fund programs, which is the same amount provided in the current year. There are no proposed program off-loads to the EPF. The funding level and programmatic approach to the EPF was very welcome news for the environmental community, and many of the groups have been vocal in their support for the Governor's budget.

OPRHP administers funding from four major EPF programs. In each case, the budget funding is continued at this year's levels, honoring the Governor's commitment to retain the EPF for traditional purposes:

• $16.2 million is provided for capital Stewardship projects, to be split between OPRHP and DEC.
• $13 million is allocated for matching grants to local governments and non-profits for park and historic preservation projects.
• $9 million is provided for grants to zoos, botanical gardens, aquaria, arboretums, and nature centers under the ZBGA program.
• $17.5 million is allocated to OPRHP's and DEC's open space land protection programs.

In conclusion, Governor Cuomo has clearly articulated the need for all parts of government to achieve costs savings and efficiencies in response to the fiscal crisis facing the state. State Parks is committed to fully participating in this effort, including implementing strategies to address the ten percent reduction to our General Fund appropriation, while maintaining the agency's core mission and programs.

We look forward to working with members of the Legislature to discuss your ideas and input as we evaluate ways to redesign agency programs and services while maintaining core services essential to the agency's mission. I am happy to respond to any questions you may have regarding the State Parks budget.