Silver Falls State Park. Courtesy Oregon Parks and Recreation.
It wasn’t all that long ago that the Oregon State Parks system was on the brink of collapse. After years of budget cuts, park maintenance had fallen so far behind that more than five dozen state parks were in danger of shutting down.
But a group of Oregonians came to the rescue, and in 1998 voters overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure dedicating 15% of lottery revenues to fund state parks, protect watersheds, and restore habitat for fish and wildlife.
That measure expires in a few years. So with time running out, many of the same supporters are working on a new ballot measure to make the funding permanent.
