Enhancing the profession's political strength.

In recent years many park and recreation agencies, tied to local government budgets, have faced declining funding while the demand for services and facilities has continued to grow. As a result, local park agencies have had to seek new sources of fund raising. Elsewhere, the Land and Water Conservation Fund has been curtailed drastically by Congress in recent years, and the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery grant program was deleted from the federal budget in the early 1980s. One might guess that this lack of federal funding has weakened parks and recreation, but instead professionals in the field turned these trials into triumph. Many local park and recreation agencies have taken active roles in promoting their interests by formulating state policies pertaining to assistance grant funding.

In Texas, for example, the Texas Recreation and Park Society (TRAPS) is the primary organization representing Texas local park and recreation agencies. Over the past decade, the top legislative concern for TRAPS has been to secure state funding for a local park fund (LPF). Formally know as the Texas Local Parks, Recreation and Open Space Fund, the LPF has a history of being "raided" by the state for uses other than park projects. In recent years, TRAPS has sought to assert direction over state policy regarding both contributions and uses of LPF funds. In doing so, TRAPS has entered the arena of interest group politics.

How Does State Government

Work?

Group theory, as a perspective to understand the mechanics of government, was developed at the end of the 19th century, and gained prominence in political science during the 1950s. The basic tenets indicate that as societies become more complex, institutionalized groups arise which represent the common interests of its members. The presence of multiple groups tend to stabilize interactions between groups. Networks of overlapping groups develop so that, when disturbances occur within these networks, groups seek adjustment through interaction with other groups in the network. The process of adjustment results in some groups "making claims" on other groups via the institutions of government, In this sense, the primary role of government is to arbitrate the conflict between contending interest groups. As one group gains influence and power, policy shifts in favor of such a group; and a new equilibrium is reached. In its simplest form, the group model endeavors to break the study of politics into its most elemental components. In Figure 1 on the next page, the initial influence of the recreation and park profession is represented by the shaded area on the right of the illustration; the influence of other special interest groups on the left. The initial point of public policy is represented by point P1, along a continuum of possible policy alternatives, where the forces exerted by the groups' influence are in balance. An increase in one group's influence will disrupt the equilibrium and cause the system to seek a new policy position.

At the state level, a strong two-party system has been viewed by some as a necessary protection of democratic government from the power of special interests. Thus, it is not surprising that interest groups have been found to be more powerful in states where the government is dominated by one party, as in Texas. In addition, the governor's office in Texas is considered politically weak, and, policy decisions are more apt to succumb to interest group influence compared to other states. A number of inter-related factors have been identified that have some bearing on interest group influence. The factors are categorized broadly as: group resources, access to decisionmakers, and group leadership. Group resources include the number of members of the group, the group's geographical distribution, prestige of membership, and financial resources.

Many scholars have argued that a group's influence is related to "access to decision-makers" and contended that powerful groups have the ability to monopolize access to government decision-makers. In state government, access techniques depend on the peculiar institutional and cultural characteristics of each state. In the Texas legislature, personal contact with lawmakers and the supplying of research and other information have been identified as important avenues for access.

Lastly, a group's leadership is considered the catalyst that transforms the potential power based in the group re sources into actual political power. Perhaps the most important function confronting group leadership is selecting a strategy that provides the best prospect for success. When a group's primary resource is a broad-based support for an issue, effective leadership selects a strategy that is able to mobilize that support.

Interviews with TRAPS and

Legislatures

Three factors were thought to contribute to interest group success relating to TRAPS lobbying efforts and the LPF policy outcomes during the 1991 Texas legislative session: group resources, access to decision-makers, and leadership. To gain more information about these elements, five interviews were conducted after the close of the 1991 legislative session; three of the interviewees were part of the TRAPS leadership during this time, and two of the interviewees were members of the Texas legislature who were familiar with TRAPS, which was elemental because of their intimate knowledge of the Texas legislature and the policy decision-making process. Although the content of these five interviews is not representative of the full political forum of the 1991 Texas legislature, it is useful to explore insights regarding lobbying effectiveness.

Interview questions were directed at providing a broad understanding of TRAPS' lobbying effectiveness. Interviewees were queried regarding legislators' perception of park and recreation issues. They also were asked about TRAPS' status regarding the various contributors to interest group success (i.e., resources, access, and leadership). And finally, interview questions were directed at identifying strengths and weaknesses of TRAPS as an organization.

The political issue relevant to TRAPS was a bill that would have increased funding to the LPF. Through an increase in cigarette taxation, the bill would have established a trust fund for the LPF; and ultimately, the LPF could have been removed from the tax rolls. As a major strategy, TRAPS had devised a legislative network comprised of 100 of its members. The network was widely distributed geographically and well-organized due to several pre-session tri al runs. The intent was to provide frequent one-to-one communication with district lawmakers during the regular session of the state legislature. In other words, the strategy was directed at presenting a broad-based "grassroots" approach to the legislature. In the final roll call, the bill was four votes shy of passing.

Enhance Political Strength

Four recommendations for future lobbying efforts were developed based on the interviews and the framework of the group model of government decision-making:

* Continue to expand "grass roots" efforts to include both park professionals and local citizens. TRAPS' greatest resource was reported to be the broad distribution of its membership and their ties to local officials. TRAPS' members were allied with local officials and citizens who had access to state officials. In general, these local officials and citizens were thought to have more prestige and influence with legislators than members of TRAPS. Increased prestige, in turn, enhances TRAPS' access to state legislators and the policy decision-making process. One interviewee indicated that TRAPS has not been cultivating these relationships for very long, but has made significant progress in this area during the past legislative session.

* Target legislators who are members of critical committees with lobbying efforts. "Grassroots" efforts should be coupled with access to the right legislators (i.e., those that serve on relevant committees). The most critical committee for TRAPS in their recent lobbying efforts was the Ways & Means Committee of the Texas House of Representatives, the body through which all new tax bills generally pass. Although TRAPS' leadership was successful in having a top-ranking member of the Ways and Means Committee author the proposed bill, one of the interviewed legislators indicated that it would have been ideal to have the Committee Chair author the bill. In addition, one interviewee mentioned that the most effective strategy to approach legislators is for groups to work with legislators and get to know them, rather than suddenly appearing on the scene during a legislative session.

* Park professionals should understand the link between political action at the local, state, and national levels and the well-being of the park and recreation industry. As a relative newcomer to the political arena, it will take time for TRAPS to develop awareness and understanding of the political mechanism. Interviewees suggested that insight into the functioning of a political process may be achieved best through long-term, active participation. Although TRAPS currently does not have the financial ability to hire a professional lobbyist, such lobbyists were reported as valuable, in part, because of their understanding of the formal as well as informal "rules" guiding legislative matters. Such knowledge would provide advantages regarding access to a policy decision-making process.

* State lobbying efforts should incorporate extensive use of the media. The interviewed legislators, both of whom have considerable experience at running successful campaigns, emphasized this recommendation. Since the political arena seems dominated by groups with much larger financial resources than TRAPS, effective use of the media to rouse public interest may improve the competitiveness of TRAPS' political agenda. Public service announcements and "op-ed" pieces in newspapers around the state were reported as being influential in swaying public opinion.

From Struggling to Strong

The park and recreation profession currently is in search of various solutions to funding problems. And, as a result, interest group politics has come of age for the park and recreation profession. In our case, TRAPS was a relative newcomer to a political arena, yet it made significant strides toward establishing itself as an influential player. However, power and influence take time to develop. If such a group is able to improve the extent of its influence in a policy area, it should be able to cause a favorable shift in that policy position. The challenge to park and recreation societies is directed at enhancing the extent of their influence. The result will be a move from financial struggle to strength.