I just noticed a price increase at the Texas State Parks.A park employee told me they went into effect last month.Fees to enter went up two dollars,the state park yearly pass went up 10 dollars.
I do not camp in the state parks,so I have no idea how much they went up.With the price of everything else,its still cheap entertainment.

No suprise there they need more money for the general fund. Since their request for donations fell on deaf ears.

Had not heard of the state parks going up but recently spent three days at a Corp Of Engineers park at Lake Lavon and they have gone to $30.00 per night for camping and they don't even have sewer hookups. Hate to guess what the day use fee is. Lots of folks from the area used to go there on week ends to get out of town but it was pretty desolate the week end we were there. b

State has to make up for lost revenue.

We go to ray Roberts alot and yes they did go up but we get a park pass each year and you don't pay daily fee and u get four discount coupons

They'll tell everyone that it's going to help the parks just to make you feel warm and fuzzy all over, but the truth is TPWD probably won't see but a very small percentage if any at all, and some politician will be the one feeling warm and fuzzy at all the new revenue he will get for his new pet projects.

Their plea for money didn't fall on my deaf ears. I heard it and chose to ignore it. I buy the annual pass with discount coupons for camping and free admittance for everyone in my vehicle. That's all they are going to get. By Texas law, the parks are already supposed to be funded by sales tax.
TPWD needs to go to Arkandsas and learn how to run state parks. Their parks have frre admittance, all of the day use facilities including boat ramps are free. Even out of state seniors get a discount on campsites. Their entire system is funded be 1/8 of 1% sales tax. We can fix the park problems with a turnover in the Legislature but that will never happen.

Can't complain too much. They should be charging those directly using the facilities.

Cabins and RV Sites went up $2.00 also.

Most of us use the boat launches at these parks without using the facilities, and these launches have long been paid for many years.

I'm all for paying as you go, but it would be nice if your dollars went to improvements when these increases come about, and not into the general fund.

They have great parks...My understanding is Texas is near or at the bottom list in the US for park funding and it shows

Just imagine if they had better funding

+1

To understand the funding situation with TPWD is important to know the factors driving it. Raising fees is an attempt to negate budget shortfalls. see the excerpt below:

Visitor fees generate about half of the $69 million operating budget for the state parks. For years, visitation has been on an upward trend, but the 2011 heat, drought and wildfires cut August visitor numbers by 25 percent compared with a year ago, state parks director Brent Leisure said.

Some parks suffered more than a 50 percent drop during the hottest months of the summer, Smith said. Fall revenue is improving but is still down 11 percent.

At the same time, the Texas drought has dried up lakes and rivers, resulting in a 30 percent decline in freshwater fishing license sales compared with a year ago.

"Overall people are just simply not getting out and enjoying the outdoors as much because of these very, very challenging weather patterns," Smith says in a "Plea for Parks" video on the agency's website

Read more here: TPWD news

I bought mine yearly pass before they went LOL !!!