Catskill Center Welcomes Senate and Assembly Budget Bills Advancing Stewardship and Visitor Services

ARKVILLE — The Catskill Center for Conservation and Development welcomes the release of the New York State Senate and Assembly one-house budget bills, which build on Governor Hochul’s Executive Budget by including critical funding for the Catskill Park, the Adirondack and Catskill Forest Preserve, the Congressman Maurice D. Hinchey Catskills Visitor Center, and the Catskill Science Collaborative. These bills represent a major step toward a final New York State budget that sustains essential stewardship, visitor services, and science priorities in the Catskills and Adirondacks.

“We are excited and deeply grateful that both the Senate and Assembly continue to recognize the importance of dedicated funding for the Forest Preserve, our visitor centers, and the science that guides sound management of these parks,” said Jeff Senterman, Executive Director of the Catskill Center. “Their proposals build on the Governor’s budget and move us closer to a final agreement that supports clean water, healthy forests, and vibrant communities in the Catskills and Adirondacks.”

The Senate and Assembly bills maintain strong, dedicated Forest Preserve stewardship funding, providing a critical foundation for trail work, visitor safety, resource protection, public access improvements, and education in both parks. Together with the Executive Budget’s stewardship commitment, these proposals reflect broad, bipartisan recognition that managing increasing use and safeguarding fragile ecosystems requires stable, long-term investment.

The Catskill Center is especially encouraged that funding for the Congressman Maurice D. Hinchey Catskills Visitor Center, Adirondack Mountain Club’s High Peaks Information Center, and two other Adirondack visitor centers appears in both bills, with a total of $1 million directed to visitor centers serving the Catskills and Adirondacks. This includes $250,000 for the Catskills Visitor Center, ensuring that our frontline visitor services, safety information, and education can continue to meet growing demand in the Catskills.

Both bills also propose robust dedicated stewardship lines that exceed the Governor’s $8 million request, with $10 million in the Assembly bill and $12 million in the Senate bill for management and stewardship of Forest Preserve lands in the Adirondack and Catskill Parks. These funds are essential for on-the-ground work such as trail construction and maintenance, infrastructure improvements, and strategic visitor management that protects sensitive natural resources while keeping the Forest Preserve open and welcoming.

The Catskill Center applauds the continued inclusion of funding for science and research facilities that are critical to understanding and responding to climate and ecological change in the Forest Preserve, including the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies’ Catskill Science Collaborative and other Adirondack research institutions. This science capacity underpins effective stewardship, from water quality protection to forest health and invasive species management. 

“As co-chair of the Catskill Park Coalition and a leader in preserving our Forest Preserve, we know these funding lines do not happen by accident, they are the result of years of advocacy and collaboration,” Senterman added. “We are grateful to Governor Hochul, Senate and Assembly leadership, and the Environmental Conservation Committee Chairs for listening to the needs of our communities and the lands and waters that sustain all New Yorkers.”

With the budget bills now released, the Catskill Center will work closely with our partners and fellow advocates, including the Adirondack Mountain Club, to ensure these priorities are fully reflected in the final enacted budget. The Catskill Center will continue mobilizing supporters and engaging lawmakers so that visitor center operations, stewardship funding, and science investments move from proposal to reality.

“These one-house budgets are a big step forward, but our work is not done,” Senterman said. “We will keep up the advocacy through final budget negotiations so that the Catskills and Adirondacks receive the sustained, strategic investment they need today and for generations to come.”