Gov. Jared Polis
Department of Natural Resources Executive Director Dan Gibb
Colorado Parks & Wildlife Director Jeff Davis
Members of the Colorado General Assembly
December 4th, 2023
Dear Gov. Polis, Directors Gibbs and Davis, and Members of the General Assembly:
On behalf of the 68 undersigned organizations, we thank you for your commitment and leadership in working toward a Colorado where nature’s benefits are available to and experienced by all. Many of our organizations were supporters of HB 21-1318 to create the Outdoor Equity Grant Program in Colorado. We celebrated when Gov. Polis signed the bill into law at Lincoln Hills CARES in Gilpin County. We are heartened by the progress made to-date, but believe there is more work to be done.
Since the program was created, Colorado Parks & Wildlife (CPW) has distributed about $3 million through two rounds of grantmaking to 69 grantees including Tribes, non-profit organizations, school districts and businesses. This funding has benefited a total of 7,498 participants in 34 counties across the state. This is a significant achievement, of which we should all be proud. Yet, the initial funding provided by HB 21-1318, which maxes out at $3 million per year beginning in the 2023-2024 fiscal year, is insufficient. Demand for grants, defined as the total dollar amount requested through the first two grant periods totaled over $23 million. Yet, in 2022 through the first two rounds of grants, just over $3 million was awarded. We recognize that demand may not be the best measure of an appropriate funding level, but quality proposals were funded at a lesser level or denied due to the current limitations on funding during the first two rounds of funding.
We believe a significant opportunity exists to expand funding to help more Colorado youth to get outside and experience nature’s benefits. Further, other states across the west have significantly resourced their outdoor equity funds and expanded funding. During New Mexico’s 2023 legislative session, they passed SB 9 - the Land of Enchantment Legacy Fund, which established a permanent endowment fund to support conservation efforts in perpetuity, including by increasing the amount available for the state’s Outdoor Equity Fund. In California, the state made $57 million worth of grants during its first round of grant applications in 2022.
We look forward to working with you and your staff to advance this initiative between now and when the Colorado legislature convenes in January 2024. Thank you again for your efforts to make Colorado’s incredible natural spaces welcoming and accessible to all.
Sincerely,
1. Jennifer Singer - 4Corners Broadband/Great Old Broads For Wilderness
2. Hector Salas – Aint Dead Communications LLC
3. Zuza Bohley - Americas for Conservation + the Arts
4. Andrea Aust - Aspen Center for Environmental Studies
5. Jenna Celmer - Basecamp Outdoor
6. John Sanderson - Center for Collaborative Conservation
7. Donahue - City of Fort Collins, Natural Areas Department
8. Katie Navin - Colorado Alliance for Environmental Education
9. Dominic Lucero - Colorado High Country Educational Treks
10. Lauren Petrie - Colorado Rising
11. Ramesh Bhatt - Colorado Sierra Club
12. Scott Segerstrom - Colorado Youth Corps Association
13. Brien Webster - Conservation Colorado
14. Teresa Martinez - Continental Divide Trail Coalition
15. Ford Church - Cottonwood Institute
16. Omar Sarabia - Defiende Nuestra Tierra
17. Matt Samelson - Donnell-Kay Foundation
18. Anita Evans - Friends of Youth and Nature
19. Becca Katz - Good Natured Learning
20. Chara Ragland - Great Old Broads for Wilderness - South San Juan Broadband
21. Christine Jauhola - Great Old Broads for Wilderness, Grand Junction Broadband
22. Carrie Krickbaum - Great Old Broads for Wilderness, Northern San Juan Broadband
23. Jason Marsden - Greater Arkansas River Nature Association
24. Ean Thomas Tafoya - GreenLatinos Colorado
25. Cindy Chang - Groundwork Denver
26. Timiya Jackson - Heart & Hand Center
27. Mike Ksenyak - Intersecting Solutions LLC
28. Josh Miller - Josh Miller Ventures LLC
29. Bianca Modesta McGrath-Martínez - Latino Outdoors Colorado
30. J.R. Lapierre - Lincoln Hills Cares
31. Zuza Bohley - Love 4 Nature, Inc.
32. Gemara Gifford - Mending Mountains Collective LLC
33. Javier Pineda - Mountain Dreamers Oso Outdoors
34. Shirley Romero Otero - Move Mountains Project: San Luis
35. Taishya Adams - Mukuyu Collective, LLC
36. Tracy Coppola - National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA)
37. Taylor Driver - Nature and Wildlife Discovery Center
38. Devin Jaffe - Nature's Educators
39. Andy Hartman - New Treks
40. Jerry Otero - Next 100 Colorado
41. Della Garelle - Northern Front Range Broads; Great Old Broads for Wilderness
42. Carmela Montenegro - Not Mad Just Misunderstood
43. Felipe Vieyra - Oso Adventure Meals
44. Beatriz Soto - Protegete
45. Jason Swann - Rising Routes
46. Jack Curry - Riverside Educational Center
47. Megan Dean - Roaring Fork Conservancy
48. Ian Stafford - Rocky Mountain Conservancy
49. Chris Talbot-Heindl - Rocky Mountain Wild
50. Christine Canaly - San Luis Valley Ecosystem Council
51. Annie Altwarg, Brian Puccerella, Dani Robben, and Mick Daniel - San Luis Valley Great
Outdoors
52. Mason Osgood - Sheep Mountain Alliance
53. Seth Ehrlich - SOS Outreach
54. Shaina Gonzales - Spirit of the Sun
55. Denisee Sierra - Sun Valley Youth Center
56. Ryan Aids - The Greenway Foundation
57. Ben Graves - The Nature Connection
58. Jim Ramey and Clara Moulton - The Wilderness Society
59. Liz Rose and Jared Romero - Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership
60. Rachel Brett - Thorne Nature Experience
61. Emily Hornback - Western Colorado Alliance
62. Maritza Arizaga - Western Resource Advocates
63. Hannah Stevens - Western Slope Conservation Center
64. John Sztukowski - Wild Connections
65. Sarah R Johnson - Wild Rose Education
66. Erin Riccio - Wilderness Workshop
67. Kriste Peoples - Women's Wilderness
68. Megan Patterson - Worldmind Nature Immersion School