Outdoor Insights: Ability to purchase outdoor endorsements while renewing vehicle tabs could be a win for Minnesota

On Jan. 15, the Minnesota DNR delivered its Outdoor Recreation Endorsement report to the Legislature. I understand that the mere name of this 15-page document already may have glazed your eyes over, but as I mentioned in this space back on Dec. 19, new natural resources funding mechanisms don’t come around often, so this topic deserves some scrutiny.

If the DNR’s forecast for this potential revenue stream holds up, it could mean management dollars for a host of public lands, including the wildlife management areas where we hunt.

But it starts with state park stickers. As inflation eats away at their purchasing power, park stickers are losing their ability to cover expenses at these properties. The last park sticker fee hike occurred in 2017, and the DNR has tried and failed three times since to increase the price.

That’s not unique to Minnesota, and three other states – Michigan, Colorado, and Kansas – have (to varying levels of success) begun selling outdoor recreation land access endorsements when citizens buy their vehicle tabs. The Jan. 15 report from our DNR explains why the concept might work here, starting with the fact that anteing up for a park pass while renewing tabs is super convenient.

Michigan probably has had the most success with its “passport,” which began in 2010 and immediately outsold the prior year’s state park permit sales. Currently, approximately 36% of eligible vehicles in Michigan buy the $15 permit.

According to the Department of Public Safety, Minnesota currently has 5.4 million registered passenger vehicles and light-duty trucks. Only 6 to 8% of those vehicles access state parks and recreation areas via the current system.

Those sales combined with permits bought by nonresidents generate roughly $8.5 million in revenue for state park and recreation area operations annually. Report authors believe that rather than hiking fees, selling permits via a convenient, routine activity – when we buy our vehicle tabs – will expand participation and stabilize the funding base for state parks and recreation areas.

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The report offers some optimistic numbers for potential revenue using the strategy: Year 1 at $15 per sticker could generate $7.3 million, but with price hikes and projected increases in participation, it grows fast: $17 and $12.9 million in year three, $19 and $20.2 million in year five, and with a 29% participation rate in year 10, that number climbs to $29.7M.

The report also suggests a “Just In Time” method of purchasing for those who need a park sticker at the last minute. Add in those dollars, and the forecast shows $31.7M by year 10. For those of you not monitoring my math, that’s four times what the state is drawing now.

Optimistic? The report and DNR Assistant Commissioner for Government Affairs Bob Meier think they’re fair based on results in other states. Meier tells me the three key environment committee chairs requested the report, and all three suggested they’re open to the opt-in model during their comments at the recent DNR Roundtable.

The report and Meier both have articulated that the funding that this proposal generates over and above state park needs could provide dollars for managing other state lands, including recreation areas, trails, water access sites, forest recreation areas, WMAs, AMAs, forests, and scientific and natural areas.

Implementing the concept would take 18 months from the time of legislative passage, so if the 2026 Legislature creates the program, the start date could be Jan. 1, 2028. See the whole report here.

Anyone who doesn’t like the concept can buy a permit sticker old school, and no one is requiring anyone to buy anything. The revenue estimates strike me a perhaps too promising, but we can’t ignore the low-risk upside. My opinion: I think the Legislature should get the ball rolling on implementing it this session.