Buy a hunting license – Pay for a nature trail

Gov. John Hickenlooper announced today a proposal to combine the Colorado Division of Wildlife and Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation into a new division. The reorganization would streamline state government, improve service to customers and preserve critical programs by combining resources of the two divisions.

Hickenlooper was joined during an announcement at the state Capitol by Sen. Gail Schwartz, D-Snowmass Village, Sen. Mary Hodge, D-Brighton, Rep. Jerry Sonnenberg, R-Sterling and Rep. Cheri Gerou, R-Evergreen. The four lawmakers will sponsor legislation to authorize the consolidation.

“We committed on our first day in office to making government more efficient, effective and elegant,” Hickenlooper said. “This proposed change in the Department of Natural Resources would do all of those things and continues our work with the legislature to more efficiently provide state services in these difficult budget times.”

The reorganized division announced today would remain a part of the Department of Natural Resources and would continue to focus on providing excellent outdoor recreation experiences for boaters, hunters, campers, anglers and others. The new division would be called the Division of Parks, Wildlife and Outdoor Recreation, or CDPW.

Because Colorado State Parks faces further budget reductions in the upcoming fiscal year, combining the agencies would meet the twin goals of more efficient delivery of services and continuation of critical programs.

The Colorado State Parks Board and the Colorado Wildlife Commission would be combined into a single oversight board. The newly unified board would, along with division employees and other stakeholders, help guide the consolidation creation of the agencies into a new division.