May 2007

From: Sproul, John [jsproul@utep.edu]Sent: Sunday, May 13, 2007 11:40 AMSubject: {FMWC} E-Newsletter -- May 2007
FRANKLIN MOUNTAINS WILDERNESS COALITION
http://www.iloveparks.com/fmwc/

NEXT MEETING: May 16, 2007
The next meeting of the Franklin Mountains Wilderness Coalition is Wednesday, May 16 at 7 p.m. It takes place in Room 411 Burges Hall on the UTEP campus. Burges Hall is at the intersection of Sun Bowl Drive and University Ave. on the west side of campus. Please be prompt. The building entrance locks automatically in the evenings. If you arrive late and no one is at the door to let you in, call 861-4361 and someone will come to let you in. For more information, contact Scott Cutler (581-6071).

PARK FUNDING AND THE TEXAS LEGISLATURE
by John Sproul

The 80th Regular Session of the Texas Legislature is moving into its final weeks. There has been progress securing adequate funding for Texas state parks, but the work is far from done. Two key bills are still under consideration.

The first is H.B. 12. At the beginning of the session, Rep. Harvey Hilderbran of Kerrville introduced 3 bills related to state parks and park funding. The first, H.B. 6, would remove the existing $32 million cap on the amount of sporting-goods sales-tax revenue that can be used for state and local parks. The second, H.B. 7, provided for transfer of certain state historic sites (including Magoffin Home) from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) to the Texas Historical Commission (THC). The third, H.B. 12, combined both these actions in a single bill. The House Committee on Culture, Recreation and Tourism (which Rep. Hilderbran chairs) reported all three bills favorably. The House Calendars Committee brought H.B. 12 forward for consideration by the full House.

As amended, H.B. 12 directs that 94% of the sporting-goods tax revenues go to state and local parks and 6% go to the THC. Based on estimates from the Comptroller’s Office, that 94% would equal approximately $106 million in Fiscal Year 2008. H.B. 12 passed the House on May 3. On May 4, it was sent to the Senate, where it is now awaiting action.

The second key bill is the general appropriations bill. Different versions have passed the House (C.S.H.B. 1) and Senate (S.C.S.H.B. 1), and a House-Senate conference committee is working to resolve the differences. This is the bill that determines the state’s budget for the next 2 years. Even if H.B. 12 becomes law and the funding cap for parks is removed, the Legislature might choose not to appropriate to the TPWD the full amount potentially available for parks.

The House conferees are advocating an appropriation for parks of $100 million for each of the next 2 years. We do not know the position of the Senate conferees at this time, but Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, who serves as president of the Senate, has expressed reservations about providing funding at this level. Let the Senate conferees know your views about funding for parks. They are:

Sen. Steve Ogden (512-463-0105, steve.ogden@senate.state.tx.us)
Sen. Judith Zaffirini (512-463-0121, judith.zaffirini@senate.state.tx.us)
Sen. John Whitmire (512-463-0115, john.whitmire@senate.state.tx.us)
Sen. Tommy Williams (512-463-0104, tommy.williams@senate.state.tx.us)
Sen. Robert Duncan (512-463-0128, robert.duncan@senate.state.tx.us)



KEEP EL PASO WILD
by John Sproul

On March 23, Sen. Eliot Shapleigh announced his “Keep El Paso Wild” legislative initiative, a package of six measures aimed at protecting natural landscapes and scenic beauty in El Paso and beyond. Included are two measures specific to Franklin Mountains State Park. The first involves lands adjacent to the Park that were identified for protection as open space in the master plans prepared for Public Service Board lands in northeast and northwest El Paso. Approximately 1,800 acres are involved, 1,600 in the northeast and 200 in the northwest. The Public Service Board wants to convey these lands to the State of Texas for inclusion in the State Park, and Sen. Shapleigh is working to make the conveyance happen.

The second measure is to pursue appropriation of $500,000 for a visitor center for the Park. In the Park management plan, the TPWD proposed a visitor center/headquarters on the east side of the mountains next to the El Paso Museum of Archaeology. This site takes advantage of the Museum’s location at the eastern gateway to the mountains, is well known and easily accessible, and promises a productive synergy between the Museum and the visitor center. Reportedly, however, there are advocates within City Hall for another site elsewhere in northeast El Paso.

Prospects for both the land conveyance and the visitor center will improve greatly if the Texas Legislature removes the current cap on the amount of sporting-goods sales-tax revenue that can be used for parks and appropriates to the TPWD the full amount of sales-tax revenue available to it.

FRANKLIN MOUNTAINS POPPIES CELEBRATION
by Scott Cutler

The culmination of the petition campaign to save Castner Range happened on March 17th with the inaugural Franklin Mountains Poppies Celebration at Castner Range. While this was not a year for a major bloom, roughly 2,400 people attended the event which ended with the Franklin Mountains Wilderness Coalition presenting to Congressman Silvestre Reyes the petitions signed by over 5,000 people. City Council members, County Commissioners, and State Senator Eliot Shapleigh were also present.

There was great support for the idea of having Castner Range preserved, but there was no commitment to getting the job done. Still, the event provided an opportunity to introduce government officials to the use of Conservation Conveyances as a means of setting aside Castner Range and protecting it from development. In the coming year, FMWC will continue making contact with influential officials and pursue getting the range set aside.

The Chihuahuan Desert Education Coalition was an invaluable partner in making this event happen. Thank you! To all those who helped with setting up and taking down, we couldn't have done it without you. And to those who worked so hard gathering petition signatures, your efforts made the event a success – conveying to our elected officials how important it is to El Pasoans to preserve all of Castner Range - forever!


A RELATED NOTE…
by judy Ackerman

Walter Christensen was the guest speaker at City Representative Melina Castro’s breakfast meeting Thursday, May 10th. Mr. Christensen works for Fort Bliss Directorate of Environment as their National Environmental Policy Act Planner and spoke about the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) that the U.S. Army Installation Management Command recently approved concerning the Fort Bliss Mission and Master Plan. The SEIS deals with the increased number of troops (due to BRAC) in El Paso and with training areas (i.e. McGregor Range).

Representative Castro and several attendees had questions about Castner Range (which was NOT included in the SEIS). Mr. Christensen said that Fort Bliss has no plans to do anything, or to even think about doing anything, with Castner Range. He indicated that Fort Bliss has two main concerns with regard to Castner: Financial – there is no money for cleaning up any unexploded ordnance (UXO); and Liability – there are hazardous UXO on Castner.

It was heartening to see that Castner Range is on the minds of many active citizens and to hear Rep. Castro reiterate her commitment to preserving Castner. Rep. Castro reminded me that with any correspondence we have with Fort Bliss, we should request it be put “in the record” so that Fort Bliss maintains the information.

Castner Range remains vulnerable to development and becomes dramatically more so with increasing population. (Mr. Christensen said the SEIS considered a possible increase of 180,000 people in the area!) We need to keep the pressure on to preserve Castner. Let’s keep Castner Range on the minds of El Pasoans, our elected officials and Fort Bliss personnel.


FUN AT FEATHERFEST 2007
by judy Ackerman

On Saturday, April 28th, FMWC had a booth at FeatherFest 2007 at Keystone Heritage Park. Thanks to Nora Butler, we had a dynamic display with historical information, coalition members, and photographs. The wind was whipping, but thanks to Sal Quintanilla’s ingenuity and yards of clear packing tape, our display stayed upright for easy viewing. Friends of the Rio Bosque joined FMWC a few days before FeatherFest, and I brought their display and brochures to add to our FMWC booth. We had a chance to chat with and give information to dozens of FeatherFest participants. Our handouts included: FMWC brochures, Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine, and Franklin Mountains State Park brochures and maps. FeatherFest is a fun and effective way to spread information on FMWC. Thanks also to Joe and Inga Groff who helped “man” the booth. Recommendations: Participate again next year. Acquire a professional display board. Co-locate with any coalition member booths and/or Franklin Mountains State Park personnel.


TRANSMOUNTAIN CLEANUP
by Scott Cutler

The Franklin Mountains Wilderness Coalition maintains a section of Transmountain Rd. as part of the Adopt-a-Highway program. On April 14th, six Coalition members participated in our first cleanup since entering the program. The weather was great and 30 bags of trash were removed from our part of the roadway. Thanks to Jane Fowler, judy and Jamie Ackerman, Miki and Andrew Cutler for helping out. Another cleanup will be held soon. If you’re interested in helping, contact me at 581-6071 and I’ll put you on the list to be informed of the next cleanup.



LONE STAR LEGACY
You can make a lasting contribution to the future of Franklin Mountains State Park with your tax-deductible donation to the Lone Star Legacy Endowment Fund. Checks, payable to "Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation" can be sent to: Lone Star Legacy Endowment Fund, c/o Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation, P.O. Box 191207, Dallas, TX, 75219. Mark your donation to the endowment fund for Franklin Mountains State Park.

FMWC IN CYBERSPACE
This is the electronic version of the Franklin Mountains Wilderness Coalition newsletter. To be added to or removed from the distribution list, contact: jsproul@utep.edu.
Many of you also receive the paper version of this newsletter. If you wish to help us save paper and postage by receiving the e-newsletter only, contact: jsproul@utep.edu.

The Franklin Mountains Wilderness Coalition
Borderland Mountain Bike Association * Celebration of Our Mountains * Chihuahuan Desert Wildlife Rescue * El Paso Archaeological Society * El Paso Cactus and Rock Club * El Paso Native Plant Society * El Paso Regional Group of the Sierra Club * El Paso/Trans-Pecos Audubon Society * El Paso Wilderness Preservation Committee * El Paso Women's Political Caucus * Friends of the Franklins * League of Women Voters of El Paso * Mesilla Valley Audubon Society * Mountain Park Community Association * Photography Enthusiasts of El Paso * Southern New Mexico Group of the Sierra Club