It&8217;s always something in St. Paul that sinks the annual bill calling for dedicated sales-tax funding for protecting Minnesota wildlife and recreation areas.

Yet Minnesota continues to develop its lakes, woods and wetlands into residential housing.

The dedicated funding stream would bolster efforts to protect our treasured landscapes, the kind of places that make Minnesota what it is.

What legacy will we leave our children? Where are the politicians in the line of Theodore Roosevelt, the kind that understand that there is much to learn from the natural world around us? They surely aren&8217;t enough of those sorts in St. Paul, that&8217;s for sure.

Each year, it is the same problem. DFL and GOP lawmakers agree they support habitat. But the DFL legislators add clauses for arts and culture into the funding stream. GOP legislators oppose the clauses for arts and culture, so the whole bill sinks.

This year it is nearly dead in the Senate Taxes Committee. John Schroers of the Minnesota Outdoor Heritage Alliance says the fat lady hasn&8217;t sung yet.

We hope he is right.

We support arts and culture, naturally, but there is a much more dire situation going on with the state of habitat in Minnesota than with arts and culture. Minnesota needs to save its beautiful places before many of them become weekend homes or hobby farms. Our suggestion for lawmakers is keep the cultural funding out of the outdoors amendment.