Syverson, Winters Diverge on Fees at State Parks

February 19th, 2008 at 01:46pm Aaron Chambers

A downstate newspaper reported today that Gov. Rod Blagojevich may propose entrance fees at state parks as part of the budget he announces on Wednesday.

Rep. Dave Winters, R-Shirland, said if the governor proposes entrance fees for Rock Cut and other state parks, he would consider the proposal. He said such a user fee could help support the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, whose budget, he said, has diminished under Blagojevich.

Winters also said he would need to look around at Wisconsin and other neighboring states to see whether they charge fees at their state parks.

“I do know that Wisconsin does have entry fees to at least some of their state parks,” Winters said. “The first thing we want to do is look for comparables — see what other states do around us.”

He added, “It is a user fee, so those who don’t use state parks aren’t going to get hit with that increase. I’m certainly not against it to start with. It may well be a way to support DNR, and we have seen tremendous cuts in their maintenance budgets and staffing levels. It’s probably one of the agencies that has been hit the most, so it may be an appropriate fee.”

On the other hand, Sen. Dave Syverson, R-Rockford, said the idea of imposing entrance fees comes up almost every year when state officials consider a budget. Syverson said such fees would likely affect people wanting to visit Rock Cut State Park.

“The issue isn’t whether or not they can afford to do it this,” he said. “The issue is why does the taxpayer have to pay to fund and maintain the parks, and then (pay) fees over and above that to use their own parks?”

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