The Legislature has struggled for years to find a funding source – outside the general fund – to pay for Washington’s incredible inventory of park property and natural resource land enjoyed by recreationists.
A day parking pass put into place several years ago was a failure. As state lawmakers whacked $10 billion from the budget over the last three years, parks were frequently put on the list of potential cuts.
Desperate to get the park system and recreation land on firm financial footing – and out of the general fund dollars – lawmakers hatched a plan for the Discover Pass, a $30 annual parking pass to enter and use state parks and recreation land.
The pass has been controversial from the start. Now state officials concede that the Discover Pass is failing to live up to revenue expectations.
According to state officials, the passes brought in $6.5 million from July 1 to Sept. 30.
The state hopes to raise at least $64 million in the first two years – or an average of $2.7 million per month. State parks officials concluded from previous surveys that’s how much visitors would pay, but actual experience shows the Discover Pass selling at an average rate of $2.1 million per month – short of expectations. We’re entering that period of the year when fewer people use state recreation and park resources, so Discover Pass sales should continue to lag monthly average expectations.
That spells trouble.
When we asked park officials whether attendance was down this summer because of the imposition of the annual pass, they said attendance figures are slow to be compiled and they don’t have up-to-date data.
It would be helpful to have more timely data so trends could be tracked.
State officials say sales of $30 Discover Pass are the problem, not the $10 day-use passes, implemented at the same time.
Officials estimated about three drivers would pay for a full year for every two who paid for a single day. In practice, the day passes are selling better. More than 156,000 annual passes were sold in three months, but day passes beat projections with more than 185,000 sold.
While state officials did a decent job of publicizing the new Discover Pass, experience shows that many people hear about the pass for the first time upon arrival in the woods or showing up at a state park. In many cases, they’ll opt for the less expensive $10 day-use pass.
State officials hold out some hope that sale of the Discover Pass will improve next spring when the weather warms and residents again start to take advantage of this state’s remarkable inventory of parks and recreational lands.
We believe some changes in the law are necessary before then.
One of the greatest arguments against the Discover Pass is that it’s issued to a vehicle, not an individual. If, for example, a family has two separate vehicles that they sometimes take camping, each vehicle must have the $30 Discover Pass.
Critics say the state is nickel and diming them to death and refuse to pay.
The federal government’s America the Beautiful parks and recreation pass sells for $80, but it’s issued to individuals. That same Washington camper could take either vehicle to a national park or use other Bureau of Land Management property on the single pass. In fact, up to two people may use the America the Beautiful federal pass.
It’s time for state lawmakers to adopt that model. Change the law so that the Discover Pass goes to individuals, not vehicles.
It’s also time for the state to focus on consistent enforcement. The Department of Natural Resources, which manages places such as Mount Si, Tiger Mountain and Capitol State Forest, has handed out just six tickets to violators. Yet park rangers and Fish and Wildlife police officers have together handed out more than 2,900 tickets. It’s time for DNR to cite instead of warn violators.
The long-term risk, of course, is if Discover Pass sale trends continue, there will be new calls in the Legislature to simply close down state parks and recreation lands.
No one wants to see that happen.
