Wisconsin state park stickers could remain valid for 12 months after purchase under new bill
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MADISON – A bill working its way through the Legislature could change how long your state parks pass remains valid in Wisconsin.
Senate Bill 415 would allow a state park sticker to remain valid for 12 months after its purchase. That means outdoor enthusiasts who purchase a pass at the end of the calendar year would still be able to use their pass after the new year. The plan would go into effect in 2025.
Sen. Robert Cowles, R-Green Bay, one of the bill's authors, said in a letter that the bill would ensure residents get their money's worth out of the $28 pass.
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"(The bill) is just a simple way to ensure that more people can be economical in their choices of how to enjoy some of the best natural places our state has to offer, while also helping to give a boost to the revenues from annual State Park System admission passes to help better maintain these places," Cowles said.
Rep. Ron Tusler, R-Harrison, said in testimony he signed on to support the bill because the current system may discourage someone from going to a state park later in the year, simply because the investment in a sticker won't get them as many park visits in October, November or December.
"This policy discourages potential visitors as the year progresses, leading to a diminished experience and reduced park visitation in the later months," he said.
He said the legislation was more than just a proposal, but a way to enhance the state parks and acknowledge the "treasure that should be accessible and enjoyable to everyone, regardless of the season."
Currently, park passes are available to residents at $28, or $15.50 for a second vehicle. Nonresident stickers are $38, and $20.50 for the second vehicle. Passes for Wisconsin senior residents are $13.
Steve Schmelzer, the director of the bureau of parks and recreation management for the Department of Natural Resources, said it was unclear how much of an impact changing the guidelines around park stickers would have on the number of passes sold each year.
"The change would most likely cause the sale of stickers to be more evenly spread throughout the year. Currently, sales are more concentrated the first six months of each year," he said in a letter to legislators. "Visitors may be more inclined to purchase an annual sticker later in the year, rather than a daily admission sticker, if they were assured to have a full 12 months of access."
He also noted the difficulty changing the pass system might cause. The sticker design would have to be changed to allow for the date of purchase to be punched into it, and the punching would have to be a manual process. The change would require a new way of shipping out stickers ordered online, taking the process from an automatic one to a manual one.
It would also cause issues at the electronic pay stations at most parks. Instead of being able to dispense stickers then and there, the machines would only be able to dispense temporary receipts, which would be exchanged at an office for a punched sticker.
In all, estimates from the DNR show that the change would likely cost about $158,000 a year. Most of that cost increase would be the amount of work put in by state employees.
Alternatively, printing out stickers with different colors and designs for each year and month would be costly, and increase the complexity of inventory and sticker management, Schmelzer said.
"The department welcomes updates to the current admission system and sees a move to a 12-month admission system as a positive for the State Park System," he said in the letter. "Of course, we are always mindful of balancing the operational expenses of the system and would request the financial resources needed to implement a 12-month system."
Charles Carlin, the director of strategic initiatives at Gathering Waters: Wisconsin's Alliance for Land Trusts, said the change would be "terrific."
"You don't want to get to September and have somebody not buy a park pass because it's only going to be good for the next three months," he said. "We want to be encouraging people to get out and enjoy Wisconsin and be outside. And if having a 12-month park pass can ease that friction a little bit, it seems like a terrific idea."
Wisconsin has 50 state parks and 39 state trails, making up about 156,000 acres of public land. Wisconsin's park system is one of the few in the U.S. that are mostly self-supporting through the sale of park passes and campsites. But funding has in recent years been an issue, according to the nonpartisan Wisconsin Policy Forum, with Wisconsin spending less than any other state on park costs, and ranking among the lowest in spending on park projects.
Senate Bill 415 has so far received unanimous bipartisan approval from the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Energy, but has not yet been scheduled for a hearing by the Assembly Committee on Forestry, Parks and Outdoor Recreation. If approved by the Assembly committee, it would need to be approved by the full Senate and Assembly, and signed into law by Gov. Tony Evers.
Laura Schulte can be reached at leschulte@jrn.com and on X at @SchulteLaura.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin lawmakers considering change to a 12-month state park pass
