Jesse Stapp of Vote YES Minnesota on the Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Amendment and What It Means for the Minnesota Biking Community

 

On November 4^th of this year, Minnesota voters will not only be choosing a President.  Also on the ballot will be the Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Amendment, whose passage would add hundreds of millions of dedicated dollars to Minnesota’s protection and enjoyment of its natural resources. 

 

Protecting the quality of our waters, improving habitat conservation for hunting and fishing, and the addition of arts-related funding received much of the attention as the legislation putting the Amendment on the ballot made its way through the halls of the Capitol.  However, millions of dollars would also be dedicated to parks and trails - including biking trails - if the Amendment passes.  The Amendment accordingly marks an important opportunity for Minnesota bikers to gain and maintain trails throughout our state. 

 

The Amendment would increase the state sales tax by three-eights of a percent, and generate an estimated $300 million of dedicated funds a year for the environment and the arts.  The "yes or no" ballot language on the Amendment reads as follows:

 

"Shall the Minnesota Constitution be amended to dedicate funding to protect our drinking water sources; to protect, enhance, and restore our wetlands, prairies, forests, and fish, game, and wildlife habitat; to preserve our arts and cultural heritage; to support our parks and trails; and to protect, enhance, and restore our lakes, rivers, steams, and groundwater by increasing the sales and use tax rate beginning July 1, 2009, by three-eighths of one percent on taxable sales until the year 2034."

 

Jesse Stapp is a field organizer and parks and trails outreach coordinator for “Vote YES Minnesota,” an organization working for the Amendment’s passage.  Jesse graciously agreed to field a few questions about the Amendment and what its approval might mean for Minnesota bikers.

 

Jesse, how and why did you get involved in the Vote YES Minnesota campaign?

 

I first started with the Vote YES Minnesota campaign in April of 2008.  At the time, I was finishing up my last semester at the University of Minnesota.  After graduation, I took my degrees in political science and economics and applied them towards passing the Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Amendment.  I am an avid fisherman and hunter, and also take annual trips up to the boundary waters to canoe and camp.

 

What is your role the organization?

 

My primary title here at Vote YES is a field organizer, and I also do extensive work with the Western suburbs and Southern Minnesota.  I am in constant contact with legislators and groups to schedule events and speaking engagements, and to coordinate our efforts to pass the Amendment on November 4^th.  I am also doing a lot of work with parks and trails’ groups and environmental organizations, including nature centers and lake association groups.

 

Could you give a brief summary of how the Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Amendment came to appear on this year's ballot? Why has it appeared on the ballot rather than being legislated directly in St. Paul?

 

The Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Amendment is nothing new to those who have followed our state’s legislative sessions over the past ten years.  Many people have been fighting for this bill for a number of years, and this is the year that the push was strong enough to make it on the ballot for the people of Minnesota to vote on.  The years-long struggle behind getting the Amendment on the ballot is why we tell everyone that this is truly is an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to protect the Minnesota that we love; we will not get this chance again.

 

As for why these funds are not legislated directly, we can’t simply appropriate the money from existing funds.  If this were an option, we’d have a clear path for protecting, restoring, and enhancing the environment and the arts.  The environment and the arts remain near historic lows in terms of funding, and there are no signs that this will change over the next twenty-five years. 

 

In Minnesota, amending the constitution is the only mechanism for creating a truly dedicated funding source.  Minnesota’s constitution has been amended numerous times, usually for limited-term funding reasons similar to this proposal.  Most recently, the constitution was amended in 2006 to provide additional funding for transportation.     

 

Is a simple majority of votes required for the ballot question to prevail?

 

For the Amendment to pass there would need to be a simple majority of votes.  However, on a constitutional Amendment question in Minnesota, every person that votes in the election but fails to vote on this specific ballot question will be counted as a ‘no’ vote.  So we not only urge people to vote all the way down the ballot, but also to tell their family members, their friends, and their neighbors to do the same.

 

How will the revenue be divided? Is the division of revenue set in stone as part of the Amendment, or is how the money is divided up to the Legislature and/or Governor?

 

The proposed Amendment locks in the percentages that will divide up the funds for four areas, which include: 33% for clean water, 33% for wildlife and natural areas, 14.25% for parks and trails, and 19.75% for the arts.

 

The 14.25% for parks and trails works out to a projected $43 million a year.

 

[Note:  For chart breaking down funding, see end of this post.]

 

How might Minnesota bikers benefit from those funds?

 

Minnesota trails would benefit greatly.  The language in the Amendment states that any trail of "regional or statewide significance" has access to this money. Accordingly, the funds could be used for any number of projects that will be planned and implemented by local groups like Friends of Cannon Valley Trail, the Parks and Trails Council of Minnesota, and others. 

 

Some examples may be connecting fragmented trails, adding staff to a maintenance group that hasn't had the funding to provide staff before, or simply restoring and enhancing existing trails. Being able to purchase land for new trails is also an option with this added funding.

 

What are some of the organizations speaking out in favor?

 

There are many groups that have endorsed our campaign and are avid supporters of passing the Amendment.  Parks and trails’ groups include: Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board, Minnesota Recreation and Park Association, Stearns County Park Board, Parks and Trails Council of Minnesota, and many others.  Our larger coalition, which includes arts groups, environmental and conservation groups, as well as parks and trails groups, has grown to over 300 organizations. 

 

All of these groups are working with our campaign to spread the word about the Amendment by reaching out to their members via newsletters, fundraisers and general education about the Amendment.  You can see a list of supporting organizations by clicking here.

 

What do you view as the greatest obstacle to approval of the Amendment?

 

The greatest challenge that we will have to overcome in order to pass this Amendment is the drop-off vote.  Just making sure that everyone has knowledge of the Amendment will be a challenge that will have to be met with hard work and dedication from our staff and supporters.

 

How can a supporter of the Amendment get involved in the effort to get it approved in November?

 

Our campaign is always recruiting volunteers to help with our efforts.  Our staff will be distributing brochures to many neighborhoods between now and the election and directly contacting voters by telephone to answer questions about the Amendment.  Supporters should contact our office if they are interested in helping out. 

 

Another way that supporters can help out is simply spreading the word.  If you have access to email, pass along information about the Amendment to friends and family and have them forward it along as well.  If you have a Facebook, MySpace, or other social network account, join our Vote YES Minnesota group and invite your friends to join also.  Making people aware of this historic opportunity is a great way to help out.  

 

 

 

Thanks again to Jesse for taking the time to provide more information about the Amendment!

 

 

You can learn more by visiting Vote YES Minnesota’s webpage here.

 

Jesse Stapp can be contacted through email at:  jesse@yesformn.org