Open Space and Trail Network
20 October 2004
Trust for Public Lands Presentation—Nissa Maddox, Conservation Finance program
TPL Mission Statement: The Trust for Public Land conserves land for people to enjoy as parks, gardens, and other natural places, ensuring livable communities for generations to come.
TPL’s Conservation Services
Conservation Vision: Helping communities develop implementation strategies for their open space goals.
Conservation Finance: Helping government partners and communities to create funding for land conservation.
Conservation Transactions: Helping government partners and communities to evaluate and purchase land.
Conservation Stewardship: Helping government partners and communities to develop plans for maintaining park lands. (TPL does not do long-term management themselves.)
Conservation Values: Helping people to realize the value of parks and conserved land.
More on Conservation Finance Program
Since, 1996, TPL has helped create more than $25 billion for parks and open space nationally
In 2002, TPL assisted with 40 measures and passed 32, generating $8.2 billion for parks and open space
Defining Conservation Finance
Creating new public dollars for land conservation;
By using traditional and non-traditional funding mechanisms;
At fiscal levels that are saleable;
For purposes that are high priorities with the electorate.
Starting Point: There has been a change in the way that land conservation has been accepted across the west as a politically palatable way to resolve land use conflicts and to deal with rapid growth. Widespread (nationwide) success of public finance measures:
|
1998 |
1999 |
2000 |
2001 |
2002 |
|
150 measures 126 passed (84%) $8.3 billion created |
102 measures 92 passed (90%) $1.8 billion created |
210 measures 174 passed (83%) $7.5 billion created |
196 measures 137 passed (70%) $1.7 billion created |
188 measures 140 passed (75%) $2.6 billion created |
Also in NM: Corrales - $2.5 million Bond (2004; for easements, arroyos, and waterways)
Santa Fe County – 2 measures for $20 million (1998, 2000)
Bernalillo County – 2 measures for over $30 million (1998, 2000)
City of Albuquerque – 1 measure for approx. $45 million (1997)
How Conservation Finance Works: 1. Coalitions of elected officials, land trusts, local leaders, and others assembled. 2. Feasibility and Legal Research (legal options, debt ceilings, fiscal analysis of community etc) 3. Public Opinion Polling 4. Measure development (ballot language written, filed, and finalized) 5. Coalition building & community outreach 6. Fundraising 7. Outreach and Promotional campaign created and distributed (TV, radio, direct mail, phones, GOTV) 8. Election Day
Capacity Building for Cons. Finance
Build broad-base of community leadership to assist with the development of public finance measure
Identifying local leadership
Facilitating communication among participants
Feasibility Research
Legal Options: Permissible revenue sources and requirements.
Fiscal Analysis: Current open space/parks funding, bond ratings, revenue trends, debt burden, cost/taxpayer of different funding options.
Political Analysis: Important political races, other ballot Q’s, big issues/controversies.
Election analysis: Election results on parks/conservation and other fiscal matters; voter turnout and voter registration figures.
Survey Research:
Looking for answers to three questions:
1. How much are people willing to pay,
2. through what funding mechanism,
3. for what purposes?
Measure Design
Ballot Language:
Follows the law
Is easy to read and understand
Emphasizes purposes not mechanism
Explains fiscal safeguards
Keys to a Successful Measure
1. Benefit must meet a compelling need (Early polling is the key. Egs: of recent poll results: support for such programs crosses party lines, WATER is a powerful word eliciting broad support, the connection between clean air, clean water and land conservation is very strong in voters’ minds)
2. Revenue source must be appropriate and affordable (Extensions of existing revenue streams easier than approval first time. Nationally, voters are willing to pay ~$50/year for conservation finance measures)
3. Voters must have confidence that the money will be spent wisely (Write the accountability into the measure; ie: a sunset time when funding ends, capping administrative costs, citizens’ advisory board)
4. A good broad-based campaign must be conducted (A broad-based coalition of supporters beyond the traditional environmental and open space community is essential. Local leadership communicating well tested messages that emphasize the compelling needs is key.)
How TPL Can Help
Provide Independent Technical Assistance
Help craft a measure that reflects voters priorities
Advise on Ballot Language
Work with volunteers
TPL staff time is free, TPL technical assistance is free. Only costs to communities are direct costs, ie: polling costs (which typically runs from $10,000 to $15,000).