NO! to OHV Funds being used for State Parks!!

[Gecko Cycles]

Just thought I would post this email I got just now. This kind of chaps my hide. I pay into the state parks as well and when I have access taken away from me especially on trails that I help build and maintain annually it really get to me.

Hello GeckoCycles,

Just got this from the Chairman of COHVCO... in short the State parks want to raid $2.3 Million dollars from OUR OHV funds to pay for state parks portion of the general fund.

This is money ONLY OHV pays for, we cannot ride in the parks, we reap no direct benefit from them (from an OHV standpoint). So we end up paying. Not the hikers, bikers, equestrians....we do.

We need to get the word out as far and as fast as possible.

You should call and leave a message to each member of the Joint Budget Committee. Tell them you DO NOT want them to raid the OHV funds to pay for the State Parks budget shortfall! (Unless they want to give us 2.3 million dollars of OHV trails in the state parks!)

Senator Moe Keller
District 20- Jefferson County
303-866-2585
moe@moekeller.com

Senator Abel Tapia
District 31- Pueblo County
303-866-2581
abel.tapia.senate@state.co.us

Senator Al White
District 8- Eagle, Garfield, Jackson, Moffat, Rio Blanco, Routt Counties
303-866-2586
al.white.senate@state.co.us

Representative Jack Pommer
District 11- Boulder County
303-866-2780
jack.pommer.house@state.co.us

Representative Mark Ferrandino
District 2- Denver County
303-866-2911
mferrandino@yahoo.com

Representative Don Marostica
District 51 - Larimer County
303-866-2947
don@donmarostica.com

__________________________________________________ _____________________
***HERE IS A FORM EMAIL TO CUT AND PASTE! ***

NO! to OHV Funds being used for State Parks!!


Greetings,

I'm a concerned CO resident who would like to strongly urge you to DENY the request to use the $2.3 million from OHV Funds for the State Parks General Shortfall Fund. I think this is robbery, plain and simple. I have paid my own money into the OHV fund and I am against using MY money for the State Park Fund. The purpose of the OHV Fund and MY MONEY reads as follows, from the CO State Parks Webpage-

Where the money goes: Benefits of the OHV Registration Program

The Colorado OHV Registration Program fees fund trail maintenance, construction, trailheads, parking areas, trail signs, maps, and land acquisition. It also enables law enforcement personnel to identify and return stolen vehicles, encourages safe and responsible OHV use, and promotes respect for public lands.
Many different groups benefit from OHV registration, including:

* OHV owners and operators;
* Towns and counties that want to attract OHV recreators to enhance their local economies; and
* The general public; educated OHV enthusiasts are more conscientious and better stewards of the land.

Registration funds also enable local, state and federal land managers to better manage our natural resources.
Annually, this direct benefit to enthusiasts funds $1.5 million in trail opportunities and improvements.

Using my OHV funds for State Parks will NOT benefit me as it is supposed to, but will instead take $2.3 million from the $3.1 million that is there, taking almost all the money out of the OHV Fund. How is the OHV Fund supposed to operate on $800k?? It simply CANNOT. Please turn down this proposal!!


__________________________________________________ _____________________________

We sincerely appreciate your time and efforts! Check the website for more updates to come as the snow continues to melt... we look forward to seeing you out on the trail soon!

Regards,

eaglecounty4x4
http://eaglecounty4x4.webs.com/ (http://eaglecounty4x4.webs.com/apps/auth/redirect?inviteID=17468635&hash=63fd1d6ef6552adb901a5fc37649075f&action=respond&next=)

[Pathrat]

Thank you for posting this up so we are informed of such things. I have noticed often that when a proposal or change of policy comes up that takes designated funding, closes trails, or has other adverse effects on our responsibly practiced hobby, it is done very very quietly.

[Chris]

I have to question the wisdom of cut & paste myself. I always take the time to send this type of email but spend a few minutes changing it to personalize it. No way to know if they're ever read, have any influence, etc but certainly worth the small effort it takes.

Thanks for posting this info, we should all do our part to protect what we have.

[Gecko Cycles]

I'm really not a proactive person so I can't say too much. I don't vote and am not that involved in public policy but some others are.
I do several trail cleanups and trail maintenance events every year. I do trail maintenance on trails I have never been on before. I clean up shooters mess and I don't shoot. I spent all day cleaning up Carnage last year for example and then they closed it to 4X's and left it open to the shooters. This burns me to no end being my local trail that I spent better than 20hrs a week on. Not a week later the shooters area was worse than it was when we hauled off 2 40' roll offs from there filled with shooters crap. This was a cleanup day put on by the OHV group. To my knowledge there is no cleanup put on by the shooters who are leaving the mess. I just don't understand when responsible users get punished after doing so much work and the culprits get rewarded by our efforts.

[Gecko Cycles]

Here is a thread on Colo4x4.
http://www.colorado4x4.org/vbb/showthread.php?t=145479

There is a letter that could be copied and sent there that will make it really easy to let all know. I called and the mailboxes were full so I sent this email. Very easy to BCC all.
Hell even I did it! LOL.
That is if you are in agreement.

I know State Parks could use the funds too but they need to get it from their own efforts. I pay into the State Parks system too for several of my vehicles. I hardly use the State Parks anymore since I wheel more than I go to State Parks now. I buy fishing license every year and am hardly fishing like I used to also.

Email this to:
moe@moekeller.com

abel.tapia.senate@state.co.us

al.white.senate@state.co.us

jack.pommer.house@state.co.us

mferrandino@yahoo.com

don@donmarostica.com


NO! to OHV Funds being used for State Parks!!


Greetings,

I'm a concerned CO resident who would like to strongly urge you to DENY the request to use the $2.3 million from OHV Funds for the State Parks General Shortfall Fund. I think this is robbery, plain and simple. I have paid my own money into the OHV fund and I am against using MY money for the State Park Fund. The purpose of the OHV Fund and MY MONEY reads as follows, from the CO State Parks Webpage-


Where the money goes: Benefits of the OHV Registration Program

The Colorado OHV Registration Program fees fund trail maintenance, construction, trailheads, parking areas, trail signs, maps, and land acquisition. It also enables law enforcement personnel to identify and return stolen vehicles, encourages safe and responsible OHV use, and promotes respect for public lands.
Many different groups benefit from OHV registration, including:

* OHV owners and operators;
* Towns and counties that want to attract OHV recreators to enhance their local economies; and
* The general public; educated OHV enthusiasts are more conscientious and better stewards of the land.

Registration funds also enable local, state and federal land managers to better manage our natural resources.
Annually, this direct benefit to enthusiasts funds $1.5 million in trail opportunities and improvements.



Using my OHV funds for State Parks will NOT benefit me as it is supposed to, but will instead take $2.3 million from the $3.1 million that is there, taking almost all the money out of the OHV Fund. How is the OHV Fund supposed to operate on $800k?? It simply CANNOT. Please turn down this proposal!!

[Pathrat]

To my knowledge there is no cleanup put on by the shooters who are leaving the mess. I just don't understand when responsible users get punished after doing so much work and the culprits get rewarded by our efforts.

Good points. I have no knowledge if any organized shooting groups sponsor any FS clean-ups, but if they don't, they should. It is the same as us when we go cleaning up camp rings and picking up pitched beer cans off the trails. We have sponsored a trail, we clean up, we don't create the mess, we don't violate trail boundaries, we do as we ethically should do when we are out. Unfortunately, the wingnuts commit the bad acts that get noticed. If there was a way to send a message, set an example that gets everyone's attention, other than target practice on the offenders, so everyone would behave, I would do it.

[Pathrat]

I have to question the wisdom of cut & paste myself. I always take the time to send this type of email but spend a few minutes changing it to personalize it. No way to know if they're ever read, have any influence, etc but certainly worth the small effort it takes.

Thanks for posting this info, we should all do our part to protect what we have.

Back when I was an intern in Congress, a large part of my job was to write back to constituents who had sent letters. We would get the letters from the regular office employees, write responses, get approval to make sure we were within the policy line, sign the Congressman's name and send them. There are real people who read these things. I just don't know what it is like with the advent of email.

[Gecko Cycles]

I thought that they would just get deleted but had some hope that a small number of the voices would be heard but never believed it really mattered.

Last that I read on Colo4x4 is that the bill never made it to the Senate and died. Their site is down now so I can't read further yet this morning the news. It is hard to believe that more news of this wasn't more widely published on TV, ect.

Looks like enough of the people's voices were heard.
I read that the voice box and email in boxes were full every day and that number is 200 for voice box and 250 for email if I recall.

Anyway it worked!

[Pathrat]

Good job for the grassroots

[Funrover]

Man... the land issues seem to keep getting worse.