90 Percent Of Ballot Questions Pass

Voters Say "Yes" to $1.8 Billion in Taxes, Bonds For Open Space in 1999 Referenda

Download the report: Voters Invest in Open Space 1999 (pdf; 1MB)

Voters in communities across the United States in 1999 sounded an overwhelming “yes” to land conservation as they authorized more than $1.8 billion in local taxing authority and bonds for open space preservation.

In the first comprehensive analysis of 1999 ballot questions on open space funding, the Land Trust Alliance found that voters passed 90 percent, or 92, of the 102 ballot questions for protection of open spaces and parks. Many of the referenda won by more than 70 percent of the votes cast. Indeed, every voter attending the town meeting last May in Woodstock, CT voted in favor of creating a land acquisition fund, while Solebury Township, PA, passed a $10 million bond issue for open space acquisition with 90 percent of the vote.

Other votes were nearly as lopsided: A ballot question in Cranbury Township, NJ, to dedicate a portion of the property tax for open space and farm land protection was passed with 84 percent of the vote. In Miami Beach, FL, a $24 million bond issue for parks and public beaches passed with 87 percent of the vote. (The full list can be found on pages 4-5 in the pdf file.)

“The trend has continued from 1998, when the Land Trust Alliance found that 84 percent of ballot questions on open space was passed by voters,” noted Land Trust Alliance President Jean Hocker. “The message is loud and clear. People want to protect their open land and their communities while they still have the chance. And they are willing to put their money where their hearts are.”

“The public’s growing enthusiasm for land conservation is reflected not only at the ballot box, but also in the rapid growth of non-governmental, community-based organizations, known as land trusts, dedicated to saving open space,” said Ms. Hocker. “In 1988, there were 745 land trusts across the country. Just a decade later, in 1998, we had 1,213 local and regional land trusts. A million Americans are supporters of land trusts, and about 50,000 of them are active volunteers.

“Their support of land trusts is well placed,” Ms. Hocker continued. “These grassroots organizations have done an amazing job. They have protected nearly 5 million acres of natural areas and other open land. They are working every day to be sure that green space remains a permanent part of our communities and our lives.”