Texas House Passes Previously Approved Senate Legislation
AUSTIN, TX — Today the Texas House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 26 and Senate Joint Resolution 24, which had previously passed the Senate on April 10. The legislation calls for the constitutional dedication of revenue from the Sporting Goods Sales Tax (SGST) to fund the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. State Representative John Cyrier (R-Lockhart) had led efforts in the House while Senator Lois Kolkhorst (R-Brenham) was the Senate author.
“We are grateful for the overwhelming support the Texas Legislature has shown for our state and local parks,” said Joseph Fitzsimons, former chair of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission and a founder of the Texas Coalition for State Parks. “Chairman Cyrier has been a determined champion for our parks and today’s vote demonstrates the Legislature’s collective commitment to conserving our state’s natural environment and outdoor heritage for generations to come. Now that the legislation has passed both chambers, we are eager to get this issue in front of Texans who we are confident will support the measure.”
The SGST was designed to create a steady stream of funding for our state and local parks. However, from 1993 to 2017, the state has collected nearly $2.5 billion in revenues from the SGST, yet only 40 percent has been appropriated for parks. The legislation calls for the constitutional dedication of these funds to ensure consistency in funding for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the Texas Historical Commission.
In 2014, the Texas State Park Advisory Committee recommended that a constitutional amendment permanently guaranteeing revenues generated from the SGST be dedicated to supporting state and local parks. In a public opinion survey, 70 percent of voters would support a constitutional amendment to permanently dedicate sales tax revenue for state parks. These numbers have held steady over a decade of polling.