RPF,
Public land refers to the public domain, unappropriated land belonging to the Federal government that is subject to sale or other disposal under general laws and is not reserved for any particular governmental or public purpose.
Much of this land was acquired early in the history of the United States as a result of purchases, wars, or treaties made with foreign countries. The Federal government used this land to encourage growth, settlement, and economic development. Land that was not developed, homesteaded, or sold remained in Federal ownership as public land. Today, the Federal government employs principles of land use planning and environmental protection to preserve the natural resources and scenic beauty found on public land.
Each western state also received federal "public land" as trust lands designated for specific beneficiaries, which the States are to manage as a condition to acceptance into the union. Those trust lands cannot any longer be considered public lands as allowing any benefits to the "public" would be in breach of loyalty to the specific beneficiaries. The trust lands (two sections, or about 1,280 acres (5.2 km2) per township) are usually managed extractively (grazing or mining), to provide revenue for public schools
Most, if not all, Utah State Parks facilities are located on Federal government owned property. Willard, Echo, East Canyon, Rockport are a few of these. Utah has negotiated a contract with the Federal government agencies (Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, et al) and pays a fee to the Federal Government to develop and mange the site as a State Park. There are other expenses associated with development & management such as building and maintaining the camping sites (primitive with no amenities & and better sites with different combinations of amenities), launch ramps & parking lots, restrooms with & without water/showers, cabins for non-RV owners, beaches with parking areas, etc, etc, etc. ALL of this costs money and I’m 100% certain that most folks will agree the improved facilities increase almost everybody’s enjoyment of the facility.
And just where does the money for all of this come from? From the Federal government? Not a chance. From wealthy philanthropists? Yeah, right. How about from state tax revenues? Bingo! Been that way from almost day one. Except now, inflation is causing the revenue to lag way behind the real costs of running the state and ALL of it's agency's. And John Q Public does NOT want his tax bill to increase so that all of these inflation increases can be covered. ESPECIALLY, if he doesn’t give a tinker’s damn about outdoor activities like hunting, fishing, camping, etc. So how is the State government going to keep covering the cost to develop and maintain our State Parks?
The State government is already doing it. They are requiring the State Parks to become self sufficient and to pay their own way. Day use fees HAVE to increase to cover the cost of running our State Parks at a level of use that is acceptable to the majority of the users. Contrary to your political leanings, there ain’t no free lunch and there never will be. State Parks are a creation of man, not a natural occurrence. And as such, there is a real dollar cost to their creation and continued existence. Nobody is forcing you to use any State Park or any of the amenities afforded patrons who do. If you don’t like the State Parks fee system, then don’t use any of the State Parks. If it's cheaper for you to stay in a motel to use Sand Hollow State Park, then by all means rent the motel room. See how easy that was?
Utah has an abundance of recreational opportunities that don’t have ANY fees associated with them. Use them instead of the State Parks. The state isn’t forcing anybody to purchase an annual day-use pass to use any of the 44 State Parks they will work in. You can pay as you go and if you only go a couple times a year, you are getting by a lot cheaper. I visit State Parks probably 40 to 50 time a year, so for folks like me, the annual pass makes a lot of sense and is a real bargain.
Go ahead and complain all you want; your reasoning is very weak at best. Self sufficiency is the way of the future. Nobody wants the alternative – tax increases that cover lots of things you (the average Joe Citizen) don’t have a need for or interest in. Deal with it.
Public land refers to the public domain, unappropriated land belonging to the Federal government that is subject to sale or other disposal under general laws and is not reserved for any particular governmental or public purpose.
Much of this land was acquired early in the history of the United States as a result of purchases, wars, or treaties made with foreign countries. The Federal government used this land to encourage growth, settlement, and economic development. Land that was not developed, homesteaded, or sold remained in Federal ownership as public land. Today, the Federal government employs principles of land use planning and environmental protection to preserve the natural resources and scenic beauty found on public land.
Each western state also received federal "public land" as trust lands designated for specific beneficiaries, which the States are to manage as a condition to acceptance into the union. Those trust lands cannot any longer be considered public lands as allowing any benefits to the "public" would be in breach of loyalty to the specific beneficiaries. The trust lands (two sections, or about 1,280 acres (5.2 km2) per township) are usually managed extractively (grazing or mining), to provide revenue for public schools
Most, if not all, Utah State Parks facilities are located on Federal government owned property. Willard, Echo, East Canyon, Rockport are a few of these. Utah has negotiated a contract with the Federal government agencies (Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, et al) and pays a fee to the Federal Government to develop and mange the site as a State Park. There are other expenses associated with development & management such as building and maintaining the camping sites (primitive with no amenities & and better sites with different combinations of amenities), launch ramps & parking lots, restrooms with & without water/showers, cabins for non-RV owners, beaches with parking areas, etc, etc, etc. ALL of this costs money and I’m 100% certain that most folks will agree the improved facilities increase almost everybody’s enjoyment of the facility.
And just where does the money for all of this come from? From the Federal government? Not a chance. From wealthy philanthropists? Yeah, right. How about from state tax revenues? Bingo! Been that way from almost day one. Except now, inflation is causing the revenue to lag way behind the real costs of running the state and ALL of it's agency's. And John Q Public does NOT want his tax bill to increase so that all of these inflation increases can be covered. ESPECIALLY, if he doesn’t give a tinker’s damn about outdoor activities like hunting, fishing, camping, etc. So how is the State government going to keep covering the cost to develop and maintain our State Parks?
The State government is already doing it. They are requiring the State Parks to become self sufficient and to pay their own way. Day use fees HAVE to increase to cover the cost of running our State Parks at a level of use that is acceptable to the majority of the users. Contrary to your political leanings, there ain’t no free lunch and there never will be. State Parks are a creation of man, not a natural occurrence. And as such, there is a real dollar cost to their creation and continued existence. Nobody is forcing you to use any State Park or any of the amenities afforded patrons who do. If you don’t like the State Parks fee system, then don’t use any of the State Parks. If it's cheaper for you to stay in a motel to use Sand Hollow State Park, then by all means rent the motel room. See how easy that was?
Utah has an abundance of recreational opportunities that don’t have ANY fees associated with them. Use them instead of the State Parks. The state isn’t forcing anybody to purchase an annual day-use pass to use any of the 44 State Parks they will work in. You can pay as you go and if you only go a couple times a year, you are getting by a lot cheaper. I visit State Parks probably 40 to 50 time a year, so for folks like me, the annual pass makes a lot of sense and is a real bargain.
Go ahead and complain all you want; your reasoning is very weak at best. Self sufficiency is the way of the future. Nobody wants the alternative – tax increases that cover lots of things you (the average Joe Citizen) don’t have a need for or interest in. Deal with it.