Greater Minnesota parks commission seeks operating funds, admin-fee change and project deadline extensions

Sen. Hauschild presented Senate File 10-39 to the Environment, Climate, and Legacy Committee on Feb. 11. The bill would appropriate parks and trails funding for Greater Minnesota under the existing 40/40/20 formula, set a flat fee of $140,000 per year for Department of Natural Resources grant administration (instead of the current 2.5% administrative fee), appropriate $500,000 per year for the Greater Minnesota Regional Parks and Trails Commission operating costs, and extend deadlines for six ongoing projects.

Why it matters: Proponents said the changes would shift a modest administrative charge away from the commission’s 20% share of the Parks and Trails Legacy allocation, freeing an estimated $354,000 over the biennium to fund additional grants to Greater Minnesota facilities. Witnesses emphasized the commission’s role designating regionally significant parks and trails and noted that Greater Minnesota historically receives a smaller share of parks and trails funding than the metro area and state parks.

Renee Mattson, executive director of the Greater Minnesota Regional Parks and Trails Commission, described the commission’s structure (13 volunteers, two representatives per district plus one at-large member), minimal overhead, two contracted professionals, and work to designate 80 facilities (with 17 additional designation-eligible sites awaiting master plans). Mattson said the commission has no permanent offices and operates with staff located in Greater Minnesota.

Mattson said the $140,000 flat fee would align DNR grant administration compensation with similar allocations and that changing the fee would save approximately $354,000 across the biennium, which the commission said could support two to three additional grants. She also described plans to hire an accessibility expert to lead audits and forums and to host International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) trail labs in Minnesota, which the commission said would increase local training availability and provide an economic boost to host communities.

Gina Hugo, parks director for Sherburne County and chair of Greater Minnesota Parks and Trails, and John Waters from the DNR both testified. Hugo urged support for shifting the grant-management charge to free money for grants in Greater Minnesota and described a recent $37,000 grant the county secured to purchase gear for public loan programs. John Waters of the DNR said the agency works closely with the commission and that DNR staff and commission members were discussing differences between the bill and the governor’s recommendations, particularly on grant-management costs.

Committee members questioned how operating costs and general-fund requests intersect with Legacy restrictions on supplanting; witnesses said they are seeking a general-fund operating appropriation in a separate file (SF 1040) to avoid using Legacy grant funds for basic operating costs, and that the current bill requests a modest increase in operating support because of inflation and expanded activities. The committee laid over the file for possible inclusion in the Legacy omnibus bill.