How the state Department of Natural Resources manages its lands has been a sore point for northern counties for decades.
Now, the Minnesota Legislative Auditor's Office, in a report issued late last week, finds that the DNR continues to buy up land for various reasons but lacks the resources and personnel to adequately mange them for their perceived purpose. That may include wildlife management areas, parks, trails and other natural areas.
"While its long-range plans propose significant future acquisitions of land, the DNR appears to lack adequate resources to manage and maintain its current land holdings," states the report. "However, except for state parks and trails, DNR has not prepared a long-range budget analysis that compares its ongoing land management needs to its current of projected funding levels."
Further, "DNR lacks a comprehensive management program to protect the state's investment in conservation easements, but is developing one."
Northern Minnesota is predominantly public lands. Counties do not want to see more lands taken off the tax rolls and placed under public management, and several have policies of no net gain in public lands.
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Bureaucracy is abundant. Several counties have been embroiled for years on getting the DNR to pay its share of work in ditches that border state-managed public lands. It has taken the DNR a decade to determine how much the ditch work "benefited" public lands, even though a state formula divvies up how ditch repairs are to be paid.
"There certainly are challenges and roadblocks that affect DNR's ability to make changes to its land holdings," the report states. "There is still significant work that DNR needs to do to alter its land holdings."
Counties are compensated for state land by a state payment called "payment-in-lieu-of-taxes." Interestingly, the report notes that counties are paid PILT often at a higher rate than they would have received in property taxes off the bare land if in private ownership. In 2009. the state paid $21.9 million in PILT under two primarily PILT laws.
The report notes that the purpose of the state's PILT payments has not been clearly established. It is, however, an important revenue source for counties who must provide services to remote areas and in maintaining forest health. In uncertain budget times, PILT remains a target for budget cuts.
The legislative auditor's report should provide good fodder for improving the DNR's land management ability, but also to prove that it needs the necessary resources to do so.
