Frequently Asked Questions
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The Protect Water and Nature ballot initiative would dedicate funds from the existing state sales tax on sporting goods to protecting and conserving water and nature — without raising taxes. The law would create a dedicated fund to support the conservation and restoration of water and land in Massachusetts, and to support the creation and improvement of parks, trails, greenspaces, and other outdoor recreation spaces.
This Nature for All Fund would be funded by the state’s existing state sales tax on sporting goods like golf clubs, RVs, and camping gear — not by creating a new tax. The law would also establish a public oversight board that would approve all expenditures from the fund.
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The ballot initiative would dedicate revenue from the existing sales tax that customers are already paying on sporting goods in Massachusetts — everything from camping gear and ski boots to RVs and golf clubs. Currently, that revenue goes into the state’s General Fund, which is the destination for most unrestricted, state-raised revenue such as the sales tax, meals tax, corporate income tax, and personal income tax. Under the ballot initiative, revenue from the existing state sales tax on sporting goods (approximately $100 million/year) would go into the Nature for All Fund instead.
The Legislature allocates the General Fund to many different things every year, including salaries and benefits for most state employees, local aid to cities and towns, debt service for money the state borrows, and the basic operating costs of many state government programs. Using money from the General Fund does not take money away from any specific spending area.
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No, this is not a tax increase — consumers and businesses won’t pay a penny more. The ballot initiative simply ensures that a portion of the sales tax we already pay on sporting goods goes toward protecting our land and water.
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The ballot initiative would establish a public oversight board made up of Massachusetts residents that would establish rules for spending from the Nature for All fund, and approve all annual spending. All spending from the fund would be to support the conservation and restoration of water and land in Massachusetts, and to support the creation and improvement of parks, trails, greenspaces, and other outdoor recreation spaces.
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Communities across the Commonwealth will have more access to nature, increased outdoor recreation opportunities, cleaner water, and decreased pollution. Examples of projects that could be funded by this ballot initiative include permanently protecting forests and wetlands, adding and improving trails in local parks and forests, removing pollution in rivers and streams, and improving our state’s climate resiliency to reduce the damage from storms and flooding.
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The ballot initiative states that the Nature for All fund could grant money for land and water conservation to non-profit conservation organizations, state agencies, cities and towns, regional government entities like regional planning agencies, economic development districts, and water districts, and tribal governments. Funding would be limited to projects that support the conservation and restoration of water and land in Massachusetts, or that support the creation and improvement of parks, trails, greenspaces, and other outdoor recreation spaces. The law would establish a public oversight board that would approve all expenditures from the fund.
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Other states including Virginia, Georgia, and Texas have already dedicated the revenue from their state’s sporting goods sales tax to land and water conservation and restoration, providing them with hundreds of millions of dollars annually to preserve, restore, and improve their land, water, forests, parks, greenspace, and outdoor recreation.
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The Protect Water and Nature ballot initiative would generate more than $100 million each year for land and water conservation. In Massachusetts, according to national economic surveys, consumers spent more than $2.496 billion in the sporting goods category in 2022, the most recent year for which data is available.
Under the ballot initiative, 1 penny of the state’s 6.25% sales tax on sporting goods would continue to be dedicated to the state’s School Building Authority, as has been state law since 2004. Another penny would continue to be dedicated to the MBTA, as has been state law since 2000. The remaining 4.25% would be dedicated to the Nature for All fund — that’s approximately $107 million dedicated to land and water conservation each year.
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Yes! Portions of the sales tax are already dedicated to specific programs, like school building projects and the MBTA. This is a common way to ensure that our tax dollars are going to important programs that voters value. Most recently, the Fair Share Amendment passed as a ballot question in 2022 and dedicated significant new funding for education and transportation programs in Massachusetts.
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All consumer goods sold in the US are assigned a category under the the U.S. Economic Census’ North America Industry Classification System (NAICS). Items categorized as sporting goods include everything from camping gear and ski boots to RVs and golf clubs.
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Currently, the state appropriates only about $25 million in bond funding for land conservation annually, but this number fluctuates year-to-year. And even when combined with local and federal matching funds, total annual funding for land and water conservation has never totaled more than $60 million. But this amount of funding is not nearly enough to meet the need for land and water conservation in Massachusetts!
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The ballot initiative would dedicate approximately $100 million each year to support the conservation and restoration of water and land in Massachusetts. That’s just 0.16% of the state’s $60.9 billion annual budget. The ballot initiative would have a negligible impact on the overall state budget, but it would have an enormous impact on land and water conservation in Massachusetts.
State revenues typically increase each year as the economy grows, keeping state investments and programs very stable and allowing the state to respond to rising costs and changing priorities. In order to minimize any short-term impacts on existing budget priorities, the ballot initiative phases in over time — only dedicating 50% of sales tax revenue from sporting goods to the Nature for All fund in the first year of implementation.
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If passed, existing budgeted state programs (such as operating support for state parks, MassWildlife programs, and climate change resiliency funding) would continue to be funded through the state's operating budget. The ballot initiative would create a new fund to invest additional resources in the conservation and restoration of water and land in Massachusetts, and to support the creation and improvement of parks, trails, greenspaces, and other outdoor recreation spaces.
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The ballot initiative would not lower any existing fees or funding streams that fund hunting and fishing programs. Instead the Nature for All Fund would increase the state’s investment in land and water for hunting and fishing.
Here are some of the current funds that support hunting and fishing. While important, these programs are relatively small, and not close to sufficient to meet the need for land and water conservation funding in Massachusetts.
Currently, the state appropriates only about $25 million in bond funding for land conservation annually — a fraction of the amount needed.
All funds from freshwater fishing, hunting, and trapping license purchases go directly into the Inland Fish and Game Fund, which can only be used to support the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife) programs and services, including the scientific management of fish and wildlife; trout and pheasant stocking; habitat management; and educational programs.
When purchasing a freshwater fishing, hunting, or trapping license, donations can be made to Wildlands Fund, which pays for the cost of acquiring wildlife habitat.
All funds from saltwater fishing permits go into the Marine Recreational Fisheries Development Fund, which is administered by the Division of Marine Fisheries and finances recreational fishing improvement programs.
In addition, federal excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment help fund state-level programs to support wildlife restoration, conservation, and hunter education and safety programs.
While important, these programs are relatively small, and not close to sufficient to meet the need for land and water conservation funding in Massachusetts. Currently, the state appropriates only about $25 million in bond funding for land conservation annually — a fraction of the amount needed.
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The ballot initiative would not affect or restrict the various ways that public land and open space are managed or used. It would simply generate more money to protect and steward our state’s natural resources. By protecting more land and water in Massachusetts, we can ensure that all the different ways we use our natural spaces can coexist better.
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