House OK’s Sporting Goods Tax Reallocation For State Parks

Yesterday, the House approved CSHB 12 on second reading, which reallocates the Sporting Goods Tax so that more money from the levy goes where it was intended—to state parks.

CSHB 12 allocates 94 percent of the revenue from the tax to the Texas Parks & Wildlife department and six percent to the Texas Historical Commission. Previously, the amount allocated for parks and rec was capped at $32 million and the rest went to the general fund.

The DMN has some background:

Parks officials want the state to spend all of the estimated $105 million collected annually on sporting goods sales taxes to revitalize the parks system. The tax fund for parks was created in 1993, but lawmakers limited how much money could be spent on parks at $32 million and spent most of the money elsewhere. Just $20.6 million from the fund went to state parks last year.

The bill passed Wednesday removes the $32 million cap, allowing lawmakers to spend more of that money on parks.

How much money still depends on House and Senate budget negotiators. Leaders on both sides have said it will be substantially more than what parks get now.

This, of course, means that there is still an outside chance that state parks could get nothing more than they are getting now if the Republican leadership finds something else to spend the money on:

“It’s a good start, but if the money doesn’t get appropriated, it won’t be meaningful,” said Ken Kramer, director of the Lone Star chapter of the Sierra Club.

Damn straight. I wonder if any Austin bookmakers have odds on how much money will be appropriated? I’m guessing it’ll top out at about $50 million.