Minutes - Environmental Policy Board - 04/02/2007

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. . . Vermillion River. She stated TPL puts all the pieces together to provide a resource in order to provide information about the benefits of conserving land. The geography in which the TPL works is very broad, including Boundary Waters, the inner cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, and everywhere in between. She stated that Ramsey stands out in the region because it is a high priority for land conservation assistance, not only for being in a very resource rich area, but having very high priority habitat corridors such as the Mississippi River, Trott Brook, and Rum River. Ramsey has a higher percent of natural resource significance, with over 3% annual growth. Ms. Pierson stated that at the federal level, funds have been decreasing over the past 5-10 years. Most communities have a park for which federal funds provided the seed grant that was matched by local funds. That is no longer the case. There are other grant programs for which Ramsey might qualify for, such as TEA-21 for roads and trails. Some state options are general obligation bonds used in the state and also at the local level, lottery proceeds amounting to about $23M per year, real estate transfer taxes (about $5.00 on a deed transfer), and license plate programs. Ms. Pierson stated that cities and counties are taking the initiative themselves, looking at dedicating funds through bonding, which is a way of accelerating investments. It helps save money now because land value may go up faster than the rate of inflation. Out of 1,000 ballot measures over the past 10 years, most have been successful at the city level. Approximately three quarters of the ballot measures in the state have been at the city level, exclusively for land conservation. On a jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction basis, more than three quarters on average pass, and roughly 60% of voters support it in every jurisdiction. That is a substantial endorsement. Ms. Pierson stated that the Trust for Public Lands (TPL) did some public opinion polling to measure what all the referendums have in common. She gave nationwide statistical data that would support small increases in taxes, despite fluctuations in the economy to fund state or local government programs to purchase land to protect water quality, natural areas, lakes, rivers, or beaches. Far and away, people care most about water quality protection first, then quality of life, protecting working farms and ranches, and protecting natural areas. If you look at strength for other areas, voter support for conservation of wildlife and natural areas tends to be higher than parks and park improvement. The leading states are New Jersey, Colorado, and Florida. Every county in New Jersey has passed a conservation measure. . Ms. Pierson stated that it is so popular in those states because cities and counties can do it. In Minnesota there is a legal authority for cities and counties to pass ballot measures. Secondly, those states provide significant matching funds for local communities to conserve land. The Mississippi River, Rum River, and Trott Brook are all on a map of high quality areas, and it makes sense for the state to help. The reason in those other states is there is a legal measure to promote conservation purposes. Local conservation finance is an essential tool that will help Ramsey get external funding. Competition for external funding is fierce. The Trust for Public Lands wants to work with the City of Ramsey to help get financing. Environmental Policy Board/ April 2, 2007 Page 3 of 14