On Nov. 20, Gov. Blagojevich finally took action on SB 1103, the supplemental appropriations bill languishing on his desk since Oct. 7 when he signed SB 790, a companion sweeps bill that restored $220 million in funds he cut from the state budget in July. SB 1103 directed how those swept funds should be spent and included $2.1 million that lawmakers designated to keep open 11 state parks the governor had slated to close Nov. 30.

Instead, last week Blagojevich approved most of the restored spending in SB 1103, including the $2.1 million for the parks, but announced that he would only keep open four of the 11 targeted sites – Kickapoo in Oakwood, Gebhard Woods in Morris, Channahon Parkway in Channahon and Hennepin Canal Parkway in Sheffield. The governor’s administration said that the poor economy had made it impossible to save all 11 parks from the chopping block.

“The closing of this many parks is unprecedented in our state’s history, and it shouldn’t be happening,” said Illinois Environmental Council Executive Director Jonathan Goldman. “Illinois lawmakers made it clear when they passed the appropriations and sweeps bills that $2.1 million was to be used to prevent all the park closures and layoffs.”

When announced last summer, the park closings sparked a huge public outcry that led to dozens of protests around the state and organized petition drives involving tens of thousands of signatures in support of keeping them open. As recently as Nov. 1, a citizens group called POP Illinois (Pack Our Parks) inspired about 18,000 people to head to state parks on that day to voice opposition to the Governor’s inaction on this issue.

Beyond the issue of park closings lies an even greater funding problem at the core of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. The $2.1 million to save the four parks announced by the governor will come from nearly $19 million in sweeps of designated environmental and conservation funds, the majority of which will go to help plug the $220 million gap in the state budget rather than to protect Illinois’ natural resources.

In addition, some of the fund transfers involve federal money and sweeping them could mean the loss of matching federal dollars. Examples include the Wildlife and Fish Fund and the Abandoned Mines and Land Reclamation Set Aside Fund, each of which is federally funded and is being targeted for $5 million in sweeps. In other cases, such as the Illinois Habitat Endowment Fund that is being tapped for $2 million, the monies derive from license or hunting fees that are explicitly restricted by federal law.

“For a long time, there has been a consistent lack of concern for Illinois’ natural resources on the part of this administration,” said Goldman. “The act of closing our state parks is just the latest in a long line of hits the IDNR has taken in the last seven years, and it is putting our natural heritage in real peril.”