Massachusetts State Reorganization

CRWA's Letter to State Legislators

Please use this letter for talking points when you call your state legislator.

July 2, 2003

Re: Governor's vetoes of Riverways Program and certain parklands provisions, and further cuts to environmental programs  

Dear State Legislator:

Charles River Watershed Association (CRWA), a 5200-member non-profit organization dedicated to protecting the Charles River and its watershed, is writing to urge you to vote to override the Governor's vetoes of: 1) funding for the Department of Fish and Wildlife's Riverways Program; 2) certain state parklands provisions and 3) further cuts in environmental programs.  We believe that it is very important to the health of the Commonwealth's water resources, the success of the newly-created Division of Urban Parks and Recreation, and environmental protection to override these vetoes.      

Riverways Program (2300-0101):

This small program's ($290,293) staff raises close to three times as much additional money in volunteer hours and non-state grants.  Its elimination through the Governor's veto comes at a critical juncture when the viability of the Commonwealth's water resources for water supply, recreation, ecosystem health, habitat, species diversity and economic development, are seriously threatened. 

The Riverways Program works closely with local watershed groups (nonprofits receiving little or no state resources) to enhance freshwater resources across the Commonwealth, and it has filled a gap caused by the elimination of the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs' Watershed Initiative through budget cuts.  The Governor's veto will jeopardize the continual progress Massachusetts has made in protecting aquatic habitat and expanding public access and enjoyment of the state's waterbodies. 

Riverways' programs include Adopt-A-Stream, River Restore, the Urban Rivers Programs, River Instream Flow Stewards, the Small Grants Program, and technical assistance.  Each program, sometimes containing a single staff member, works in partnership with citizens to restore and protect our rivers.  By leveraging a very small state investment into a tremendous benefit for communities and citizens statewide, the Riverways Program outperforms many other more expensive state programs.

We urge you to support an override to maintain line item 2300-0101 for funding of the Riverways Program.   

Parkland provisions (Line item 2000-0100), (Outside Section 248), and (Outside Section 627:

The Governor has vetoed one line item and a number of outside sections of the budget that were aimed at protecting the metropolitan parks system, which is being merged along with the state park system into the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR).  The metropolitan parks system will now be part of the Division of Urban Parks and Recreation within DCR.  CRWA has supported the reorganization because we believe it will provide far better management of the park system than the existing MDC has been able to do.  Our support, however, has always been based on strong language protecting the park system and keeping the parkways an integral part of the metropolitan parks system.  

The legislature included effective language in the budget, outlining policies that protect the natural resources and ensure the maintenance of recreational facilities.  You also included strong language protecting the "scenic and historic integrity of its roadways and boulevards," and ensuring that care, custody and control of these parkways would remain with DCR.  Regardless of which agency performs the actual maintenance of these parkways, the planning, oversight and decision-making for the parkways must remain with DCR, and the parkways use and management must be integrated with the whole park system.

We urge you to override the Governor's vetoes that potentially weaken protection of the park system.  Specifically, we ask you to override vetoes on the following parkland related line item and outside sections:

·         Line item 2000-0100 (the Governor struck language protecting the parkways in this line item that CRWA supports);

·         Outside Section 248 (requiring DCR to protect the scenic and historic integrity of the parkways);

·         Outside Section 627 (outlining important policy goals for the state's parklands, recreational and natural resources)

Further environmental program cuts:

The Governor cut an additional $6,793,869 from environmental programs, or 4% more than in the Conference Committee report agreed to by the legislature last week.  Environmental programs are now less than 0.75% of the overall budget.  Those vetoes represent real cuts to agency budgets and we urge to restore this funding.  Of critical importance are administrative law judges (line item 2000-0500), recycling programs (line item 2010-0200), and the Toxic Use Reduction Institute (line item 7100-0300).

Thank you for your continued support of our state's parkland and recreational resources. 

Sincerely,

                                                                        Robert L. Zimmerman, Jr.
                                                                                    Executive Director

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