Holcomb budget plan bolsters natural resource spending, but will funding be cut?
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Gov. Eric Holcomb’s proposed biennial budget included more than $75 million for acquisition and conservation of important natural properties, construction of new trails, and a pay increase for conservation officers.
Holcomb touted the funding during his State of the State address in January. He proposed $50 million for trails. Another $25 million, Holcomb said, was earmarked "to build on our highly successful land conservation program, with partners like The Nature Conservancy and the Central Indiana Land Trust, so that even more Hoosiers and our guests can enjoy Indiana’s great outdoors.”
Still, the funding proposal faces challenges in the General Assembly. The amount Holcomb requested for land acquisition proposal already took a $10 million hit in the House.
The Senate also is creating its own budget proposal.
$25 million a 'landmark amount' for land purchases
Groups across the state have been rallying lawmakers for years to invest more in public land acquisition, and Holcomb's budget delivered.
The Indiana Department of Natural Resources oversees the President Benjamin Harrison Conservation Trust Fund, which was established to acquire and protect land. Budget funds are sent to the trust, which operates under a review committee to approve acquisition proposals.
The trust's land purchases, by statue, must be property for existing state and local parks, archeological and historic sites, state forests, state and local nature preserves, state fish and wildlife areas, wetlands, local conservation areas, trails, and river corridors.
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Approved purchase are paid for with the state funds, while the maintenance and upkeep costs are supplied by the applicant, usually a non-profit land trust or local government.
Tim Maloney with the Hoosier Environmental Council said this is a effective way for the state to spend money and leverage private funding for perpetual maintenance.
“The best I can tell that ($25 million) is a record. Just that line item from the state general fund is a landmark amount,” Maloney said. “Unfortunately, the House cut that from $25 to $15 million and we still have not figured out why that is the case, so we’re working to get that restored to the governor’s recommendation.”
Outdoor spaces vital to mental, physical health of Hoosiers
Funding in Indiana for land acquisition and conservation has been inconsistent for years, said Andrea Huntington, executive director of the Indiana Land Protection Alliance.
She said Holcomb' proposal is "definitely going in the right direction.”
Natural outdoor areas and conservation spaces are a vital to the physical and mental health of Hoosiers, Huntington said. Such land is important for species and biodiversity, and also bolsters the state’s economy with ecotourism and other outdoor recreational activities.
Conservation officers, public employees to receive salary bumps
Scott Salmon, a board member of Indiana’s chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, worked for the state for five years. He said low wages are driving talented state workers to the private sector and adjacent states for better salaries. This year’s budget aims to reduce the brain drain, with nearly $20 million in salary adjustments for DNR.
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The budget also increases the salary matrix for state law enforcement officers, including DNR's conservation officers.
“Now they don’t have as strong an incentive to jump to the private sector to really make a decent living,” said HEC's Maloney.
Extending Indiana's trails and walking paths
Holcomb has also proposed $50 million for further trail development.
Mitch Barloga, board president of the Greenways Foundation of Indiana, said trail use is growing and funds are needed to maintain existing trails and build new ones.
“To say we are in the Golden Age of trail development," Barloga said, "is an understatement.”
Holcomb, in his State of the State address, shared his goal to see the trail following the Monon Railroad corridor become the longest in the state, totaling more than 62 miles.
“Trails and land conservation are sweet spots for Janet, and our dog Henry and me, and so many other Hoosiers,” Holcomb said.
Karl Schneider is an IndyStar environment reporter. You can reach him at karl.schneider@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter @karlstartswithk
IndyStar's environmental reporting project is made possible through the generous support of the nonprofit Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Holcomb wants to boost natural resource spending. Do lawmakers agree?
