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By Dan Kraker, Minnesota Public Radio News

At a time when partisan divides are starker than ever, Minnesota voters of all political stripes overwhelmingly backed a constitutional amendment that continues to fund environmental research and natural resource protection.

The vote assures that 40 percent of Minnesota’s lottery proceeds will continue to be funneled into the Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund for another 25 years.

That means that tens of millions of dollars annually will still be used for a host of projects around the state, from research on water quality and invasive species, to efforts to acquire land and restore habitat, build trails and improve parks, and for environmental education and outreach efforts.

More than 77 percent of voters approved the amendment, which has earned remarkably consistent levels of support over the years.

It’s the third time the state’s voters have backed the amendment. More than three-quarters of Minnesotans voted to create the trust fund in 1988. It was re-upped 10 years later by a similar margin.

The vote for the constitutional amendment faced a higher bar than candidates on the ballot. It needed 50 percent of all voters to approve the ballot question. Leaving the question blank constituted a “No” vote.

Backers of the measure worried it could fly under the radar of voters preoccupied with the consequential and divisive presidential race.

But those fears proved unfounded. Around five out of every six voters who filled out the question answered “Yes.” About 200,000 voters left the question blank.

“There might be a lot of issues that divide us, but I do think Minnesotans really love the great outdoors,” said Elizabeth Wefel, a lobbyist for the Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities, one of more than 150 organizations, local governments and businesses that formed a coalition to advocate for the amendment.

“They don’t check your party when you go check into a regional or state park, or when you’re applying for a fishing license,” said Wefel, who added the margin by which the amendment passed is evidence of “what the great outdoors means to the fiber of Minnesota and who we are.”

Backers also attribute the wide-ranging support to the breadth of projects funded by lottery money. Wefel cited new trails in Virginia, Brainerd and Red Wing; a project to reduce salt pollution in lakes around Alexandria; and a nitrate removal project in Fairmont.

Advocates also say it boils down to the simple fact that both Republicans and Democrats hunt and fish. They both recreate in parks and on trails, whether on bikes, ATVs or snowmobiles. They both value clean water.

“If anything is going to be the bridge across the aisle, I think we can find common ground in the outdoors,” said Jared Mazurek, executive director of the Minnesota Deer Hunters Association.

Elk, wolves, fish, fishing — and a lot more

Since 1991, more than $1 billion in lottery proceeds have been funneled into more than 1,700 projects around the state.

This year $79.6 million was withdrawn from the fund to pay for 101 projects, including an effort to expand fishing opportunities in urban areas, a project to assess the health of the state’s elk herd, the continuation of a study into the lives of wolves around Voyageurs National Park and a project to map the state’s groundwater.

The lottery money has also paid for years of research into some of Minnesota’s most complex environmental problems, including so-called “forever chemicals” such as PFAS.

The projects are vetted by the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR), which makes funding recommendations to the state Legislature. The commission has recommended a record $103 million in funding for 126 projects next year.

This year’s amendment includes a new wrinkle. It increases the amount of money that can be spent from the fund each year by an additional 1.5 percent, from 5.5 to 7 percent.

The estimated $20 million to $25 million annually would be used to fund a new community grant program designed to be accessed by smaller organizations that serve underserved communities — groups that advocates say have historically had a difficult time winning grants through the LCCMR process.

A new 11-member advisory council, overseen by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, would be created to recommend which projects to fund.

Some Republican lawmakers criticized that provision. They say the state legislature should have final say over what projects get funded.

Ron Potter, President of the ATV Association of Minnesota, agrees. But his organization still supported the ballot question. He said lottery funding has been used in recent years to fund ATV trail projects around the state, including $1.9 million for trail upgrades near his hometown of Ely.

“You wouldn’t want to throw the baby over the bath water,” Potter said. “It’s funding outdoor recreation, and Minnesota is is known for its outdoor activity.”

The amendment also includes a new provision that blocks the spending of trust fund proceeds to help pay for wastewater treatment plants.

Minnesota is unique in that it has two constitutionally dedicated funding sources for the environment: the lottery-backed trust fund, and the Legacy Amendment, which channels a portion of the state sales tax into projects supporting clean water, the outdoors, parks and trails, and arts and culture.

Minnesota voters will likely be asked in 10 years to renew the Legacy funding, said Marcus Starr, campaigns director at Conservation Minnesota, which led a coalition in favor of the lottery amendment.

Starr said this year’s vote gives him confidence that when the time comes, the state’s voters will once again choose to back the environment.

“If we’re already right here with this one, we feel pretty good looking down the road at something like that,” said Starr.