Wednesday, November 26, 2025

New User Fees Proposed for WI Public Lands?

In recent news, I became aware of a proposal going before the Wisconsin legislature that would add usage fees for hiking, biking, skiing and foraging on state lands It seemed to me to be another attempt to undermine the state parks and make using them more expensive for the average person. I find this distressing. My family used WI state parks frequently when I was growing up. They were jewels - well maintained with amazing programs that promoted love of the outdoors and nature. As time went on, the budget cuts that the state parks in particular have suffered have left them more understaffed, tattered and rough looking. 

When I read this Facebook post by Derrick Mayoleth over on his Skillet Creek Media  page, I thought he did a great job of putting what has been happening at the legislative level over the past 30+ years in sharp perspective. Now is a time, if you are a Wisconsin resident, to be informed, aware and ready for advocacy to support what you think is important in terms of this proposal. Let your representatives in the legislature know what you think. The more we know, the better advocates we can be.

This post is reprinted with permission from the November 25, 2025 Skillet Creek Media Facebook post. You can read the thoughtful responses to his post there.

The DNR Revenue Stream Refresh. Fixing a Problem They Created?
Derrick Mayoleth

The crumbling east bluff trail at Devil's Lake State Park
Image - Skillet Creek Media

I do not enjoy going into politics here, but it is important to keep you up to date on news that affects our public lands. Please share your thoughts with respect or they will be removed. With that in mind, here is the big story and my personal take on it.

There is a new proposal at the [Wisconsin] Capitol to add fees for hiking, biking, skiing, and foraging on state land. The sponsors say they are trying to help close a DNR budget deficit. The proposal includes a $20 hiking fee and $40 fees for skiing, biking, and foraging, along with possible fees for non-motorized boats, kayaks, and similar gear. (This is in addition to your current park sticker). Many of these new fees are higher than the fees required for hunting and fishing. That is the headline.
 
The deeper story is how we got here in the first place. [See links below]
 
This moment did not appear out of nowhere. The erosion of support for Wisconsin’s parks and conservation programs has been building since the mid-1990s (when, by the way, I worked at Devil's Lake myself). What the public sees today, and what this new package claims to fix, in my view, is the result of policy choices that steadily removed the DNR and the state park system from the shared tax base and pushed them onto visitors, volunteers, and user fees.

In the 1990s the DNR received far more support from general state tax funding. That support began to shrink as lawmakers shifted budget priorities. By the late 1990s the Legislature removed the rule that required the state to pay at least half of park operating costs. From that point on, parks were nudged toward a pay your own way model. Every budget cycle after that trimmed a little more from their foundation.

The largest drop came during the Walker years. Those budgets eliminated all state tax funding for park operations and replaced it with higher admission, camping, and trail fees. They also cut staff across the entire DNR, including naturalists, educators, scientists, rangers, trail crews, and other operations staff. The cuts were deep enough that by the late 2010s Wisconsin ranked last in the nation in per visitor park funding. The system stayed running only because of rising visitation, higher fees, and the work of Friends groups and volunteers. You only have to walk the trails at Devil’s Lake State Park to see how that has played out.

That is the backdrop to this year’s proposal. Lawmakers are describing a funding crisis that needs new fees to solve, but the crisis, in my opinion and in the opinion of many who have watched this unfold for decades, is the predictable result of decisions made over thirty years. Tax support was steadily withdrawn. Parks were pushed off the tax base. The workforce was reduced. The public was told that the system should fund itself through stickers and user fees. Now the same policymakers are announcing that the system is underfunded and must find new revenue somewhere else.

It is true that the parks are underfunded and need stable, long-term support. It is also fair to say that the funding model shaped by current lawmakers and those before them created the very gap they are now asking the public to fill.

If we forget that history, as they seem to hope we will, we may see this as smart policy rather than a solution to a problem created by the same philosophy that got us here. And unless something changes, we will be right back here ten years from now, discussing the next round of fee increases to rescue a system that was, as many believe, set up to fail.

Resource Links
Derrick writes (and photographs and films) extensively on the Dells and Baraboo Hills area of WI where the Driftless area ends and both moraines and unglaciated geological formations tower.  He explores and celebrates the incredible landscapes, trails, parks and opportunities and loves connecting people with nature via education, respectful discussion and inspiring visuals of Wisconsin's beauty. You can also find him at Skillet Creek Photography.
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