Staff Report
GILROY
– Fees at California State Parks will increase with the coming
of the New Year – but campers with some foresight still have a
couple of days to dodge the rate hikes.
GILROY – Fees at California State Parks will increase with the coming of the New Year – but campers with some foresight still have a couple of days to dodge the rate hikes.
State parks officials say the fee hike is a response to looming tough decisions on the state’s budget shortfall, which may reach $30 billion. However, even with the increase, fees will remain lower than they were prior to 2000-2001, when fees were reduced before the economic downturn, officials said.
But savvy campers hoping to use the state parks during the upcoming summer still have time to avoid the increases. The new rate schedule will apply to reservations made after the start of the new year, and campers who have already made reservations for 2003 will not pay the higher fees.
The increases will be reflected as follows:
• Day Use: Regular day-use fees will range between $2 and $5. Currently, they range up to $3. Before 2000, they ranged up to $6.
• Camping: Basic camping fees will be $13, compared to the current $12. Additional fees will be reestablished for extras – for example, parking fees for additional vehicles will be reinstituted at the day-use rate and will apply regardless of the reservation date.
Other additional fees include a $4 fee for premium sites and $3 fee for peak-season reservations.
• Boat Launching: The fees, which were eliminated two years ago, will be reestablished between $2 and $4.
• Annual passes: Cost for annual day-use passes will increase from $35 to $67, and annual boat-launching passes will be reestablished at $45. The day-use fee or an annual day-use pass will still be required when using the annual boat-launching pass.
The rate for day-use passes was $75 prior to 2001, and the rate for boat-launching $50.
• Museums and Historic Parks: The adult entrance fee for historic parks and museums will range from $2 to $4, up from the current $1 to $3 rate.
