Stewardship talking points
2/7/2011

 

Gov. Walker realizes the value of the Stewardship Program.

• Few governmental programs enjoy such public support – since 1990, Stewardship has protected and opened more than 600,000 acres of Wisconsin to our citizens.
• Helps keep our forests in production.  The wood products industry is one of the five largest employers in the state and pumps $20 billion into our economy.
• Provides the recreational land that is the cornerstone of our $13 billion tourism industry.
• Outdoor recreation is part of the fabric of Wisconsin, and over 90% of Stewardship land is open to most hunting, fishing, hiking and skiing.
• Investing in the wild places for our children and grandchildren is important.

 

But right now Wisconsin faces a fiscal crisis and every state financial outlay has to be on the table.

• All agencies are being asked to closely review their operations to assist in balancing the current state budget and to limit the state's liabilities in future budgets.
• All non-essential spending and non-essential bonding activities are being closely scrutinized.
• Annual interest alone on Stewardship Bonding in the next fiscal year (beginning in June) is expected to be between $29 and $31 million; additional bonding adds to those annual costs.
• In 2007, the Legislature approved increasing the amount of money Wisconsin could bond per year for Stewardship from $60 million to $86 million starting in 2010.

 

Accordingly, DNR is currently reviewing all of its processes and procedures for Stewardship grants and purchases. 

• Goal is to maximize the benefits to taxpayers from the Stewardship Fund in a time of very limited resources. 
• This review could take a number of months.
• DNR will be severely curtailing its Stewardship spending for the immediate future, with only the highest priorities moving forward.
• Among priorities will be assuring land we have – such as state parks – remains well maintained and ready for the public to use and enjoy.
• DNR will concentrate on fine tuning acquisition priorities, land management activities and assessing surplus land for sale or exchange for other, more valuable conservation land.
• DNR is also asking all of its partners to refrain from making commitments that rely on Stewardship funding. 
• Our partners remain an important component of the Stewardship Program. Their ability to bring matching dollars will help to stretch our available acquisition funds in the future.
• With limited funds, we will be developing a scoring and ranking process for future grant requests so we can assure that we are obtaining the best properties.
• We understand the importance of Stewardship to local units of government and non-profits in providing recreational opportunities and preserving ecologically rare tracts of land, but we ask for cooperation and will not make additional Stewardship grants this fiscal year [through the end of June.]

 

Gov. Walker and DNR remain committed to the Stewardship Program and to continuing it in the future, but we need to react right now to alleviating the immediate state fiscal crisis.