Restore Funding to Fully Staff Illinois Department of Natural Resources

Please call or email your Illinois State Senator and your State Representative and urge them to restore full funding for the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Recently, Governor Blagojevich has decided to lay off front line employees from the Illinois DNR, many of whom are career land managers at state parks across Illinois, such as Illinois Beach, Volo Bog, Tunnel Hill and others.

Our state parks and natural areas provide recreational opportunities to millions of Illinois citizens every year. It is vital that we continue to staff these areas and insure that they stay open and accessible to the public. While many programs are being scaled back, the Illinois DNR is bearing a disproportionate share of the burden. As a result, the Department is losing many career employees who helped the Department earn a national reputation for natural resources management. We must preserve and protect our parks and natural areas.

Don’t let the Governor cut the funding for the staff who manage and protect our state parks, forest preserves, and wildlife habitats.

Update: HB 214 restores the DNR funding to the previous level and HB 1050 improves DNR funding.

Please ask both your State Representative and State Senator to support both of these bills.

Please call or email your senator and representative TODAY and urge them to restore the funding to staff the Illinois DNR.

You can find out who your state senator and state representative are online at http://www.elections.state.il.us/dls/pages/DLSAddresscrit.asp

Click on legislator lookup, choose search by address, and then enter your 9 digit zipcode. This will give you the name, phone number, address and email address of both your state senator and your state representative. CALL TODAY!