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Committee advances bill letting counties add up to $1 surcharge on state park entrance fees to aid local first responders
Summary
The House Natural Resources committee voted 12–0 to advance HB 1204, an optional measure allowing county councils to impose up to a $1 surcharge on DNR-collected state park entrance fees (exempting annual-pass holders) to support local public safety, infrastructure and water-quality projects; advocates urged clearer limits to ensure funds benefit affected parks and responders.
The House Committee on Natural Resources advanced HB 1204 by a 12–0 roll call, a measure that would let county councils impose a surcharge of up to $1 on Department of Natural Resources entrance fees collected at state parks and recreation areas. The surcharge would be optional for counties and would exempt annual pass holders.
Sponsor Representative Dave Hall said the bill is meant to help counties that host state-owned properties cover public-safety and infrastructure costs — for example, volunteer fire departments and EMS that respond to incidents on park lands. Hall presented a spreadsheet showing in-state and out-of-state daily vehicle counts and estimated revenue; he said the surcharge could generate meaningful local revenue…
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