If approved, Question 6 would divert some of the state sales tax into a fund for nature conservation and recreation. A share of taxes on recreation gear and spending at golf courses would be put into a new trust called the Nature for All Fund.
This is not a new tax; it's a suggestion that the Legislature take existing tax money and spend it on something specific. The law would allow state agencies, cities, towns, tribal governments and nonprofits to apply for a share of the money for conservation and recreation projects.
Massachusetts spends about $400 million every year on nature conservation. This initiative would likely allocate somewhere between $65 million and $100 million a year.
What do supporters say?
Supporters say this is a way for voters to tell lawmakers that nature is important to them. They say the money could go to things like making sure drinking water remains clean, keeping pollution at bay in waterways, creating and sprucing up public parks and conserving wildlife habitats.
"Overall, in the state budget, less than 1% goes to the environment," Mass Audubon president and CEO David O'Neill told GBH's Boston Public Radio. "What we're trying to do is create about a $100-million-a-year fund for nature, and that $100 million represents 0.16% of the overall budget. So, we haven't had the resources necessary, or reliable resources, that are necessary for us to be able to protect the nature that we all love, care about and require."
What do opponents say?
There's no organized campaign against this measure, but that does not mean no one opposes it. Some lawmakers point out that the power to decide how tax dollars are spent rests not with voters but with members of the state Legislature.
The measure itself says that the Legislature would still be responsible for allocating these funds.
Who is paying for this?
The group Vote Yes for Water and Nature has spent just over $1.5 million supporting this question. Its contributors include Kirsten Waerstad, director of the Humani Foundation, who gave $800,000, and Mass Audubon, which gave $300,000.
Because there is no official campaign against Question 6, the state's Office of Campaign and Political Finance is not tracking spending against it.
Bottom line:
A "Yes" vote would create a Nature for All Fund and tell lawmakers that voters want to use tax money from recreational gear and golf courses to fund nature conservation projects. A "No" vote would not create the fund.
More resources:
- Video: Explaining Question 6 on Boston Public Radio
- Summary from the Secretary of State's Office
- Attorney General's summary of the law
- Video: A special committee hearing on Question 6
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