Challenge
In 2009, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s state budget proposal threatened to eliminate $143 million in General Fund support for state parks, which would force the closure of more than 200 of California’s 279 state parks, including 60 of 61 redwood parks. Fighting parks closures became a top priority for LCI’s client Save the Redwoods League, the nation’s only nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting ancient redwoods throughout their natural range. LCI was challenged to:

• Help galvanize the public and build legislative support needed to reverse or minimize park closures and ensure critically-needed funding through an advocacy media campaign
• Keep state parks in the news throughout the budget process
• Position Ruskin Hartley, Save the Redwoods League’s executive director, as an expert on state parks closures and implications for California’s redwoods
• Ensure consistent messaging and strategy for the League as a member of the Save Our State Parks coalition – a group comprised of 30+ environmental groups fighting to save parks

Strategy
In order to ensure that the issue of state budget cuts and their effect on state parks was top of mind with media and Californians, LCI conducted proactive media outreach and positioned Ruskin Hartley, executive director of Save the Redwoods League, as an expert resource on state parks.

LCI leveraged each legislative milestone to build awareness of the threats to state parks. LCI drafted and distributed statements from Hartley around the proposal to create a $15 vehicle registration fee to support parks, the Legislature’s vote on the budget and the Governor’s final decision on the budget. LCI used solid proof points in the statements to emphasize the importance of finding a stable, dedicated funding source to keep parks open. Evidence included the $4.2 billion in direct spending generated each year by state park visitors, the impact of the loss of jobs and expertise of park rangers and the limited access to the remaining 5 percent of the world’s ancient redwood forests. When budget news broke, LCI was poised to conduct proactive outreach to environment/state budget media across mediums to offer Ruskin Hartley as an expert resource.

To maximize visibility, LCI distributed statements to environmental writers at key California publications and utilized both online and traditional newswire distributions. By generating online pickup of these statements, LCI made it easy for reporters to access Hartley’s quotes, the League’s messaging and information about the state budget process. LCI also pitched League statements as letters to the editor for newspaper editorial sections.

Additionally, LCI worked closely with California State Parks Foundation and the Save our State Parks coalition to help the League create actionable PR strategies and to ensure that the League’s messaging was consistent with other environmental groups fighting for parks.

Results
LCI’s public relations campaign resulted in secured coverage of the League and state parks in top-tier and California media, including a San Francisco Chronicle editorial piece supporting the vehicle registration fee as a viable solution to save parks. LCI secured interviews for Ruskin Hartley with TIME magazine, as well as the San Jose Mercury News, San Diego Union-Tribune, Eureka Times-Standard, Mid-County Post and Daily Triplicate. Articles appeared in the Contra Costa Times, Riverside Press-Enterprise, Monterey County Weekly, Mid-County Post, Eureka Times-Standard, Humboldt Beacon and Daily Triplicate. Ruskin also commented on the state parks in a radio segment by Public News Service, which provides public affairs content to radio stations across America. Letters to the editor were published by the Associated Press, San Francisco Chronicle, Alameda Journal, Piedmonter, Montclarion, Berkeley Voice and El Cerrito Journal.

Sustained pressure from Californians, environmental organizations and media on Governor Schwarzenegger moved him to reverse the parks closures in September 2009. However, the significant cuts in General Fund support to California State Parks will lead to reductions of park staff, maintenance and public access hours. Save the Redwoods League continues to work to find a stable, dedicated funding source for state parks.