Support Nature Preserves on Your Ohio Income Tax Return
The nature preserves checkoff on the Ohio personal income tax return started with the 1983 tax return, and since then the Ohio Division of Natural Areas and Preserves (DNAP) has received over two million donations! Clearly Ohioans care about natural area protection; they have given almost $16 million and have made a huge improvement in the quality of nature protection in Ohio If you are not very familiar with the Ohio nature preserves program, we urge you to explore the web pages identified on the left side of this page, especially the “Nature Preserves” and “About the Division” links.
Recent history creates urgent need for additional support
Invasive species are harming our nature preserves more than ever before, and funding reductions over the past five years have significantly reduced land management ability • Checkoff donations now represent about one-fourth of all monies available for our work • Tax dollar support was eliminated last fiscal year, but thankfully the Ohio General Assembly appropriated $1.2 million per year beginning in July 2011 • Additional checkoff donations from the many Ohioans who love the natural beauty of our state will mean that the DNAP can provide protection to the most vulnerable preserves until the state’s economy improves and support is restored to previous levels • With your help the most fragile nature preserves will receive effective ecological management to prevent invasive species from overwhelming the rare species we are trying to protect
How have the previous donations been used?
- Land protection -- Acquiring new nature preserves and adding critical additions to existing preserves
- Public Use Facility Development – Providing public access so the public can enjoy the preserves
- Endangered species and natural community research – Providing good science to preserve management
- Special Projects – Activities that benefit good preserve management and identification of new areas
If you want a more detailed list of previous expenditures from the checkoff fund, email us
Ohioans who wish to help Ohio's natural areas but are not eligible to receive a state income tax refund may make a direct contribution to the Division of Natural Areas and Preserves at 2045 Morse Road, Bldg. C-3, Columbus, OH 43229. Please indicate Fund 5220 on your donation. |