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NATURIST ACTION COMMITTEE
ACTION ALERT
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http://www.naturistaction.org
**********************************************************************Copyright 2011 by the Naturist Action Committee, which is responsible for its content. Permission is granted for the posting, forwarding or redistribution of this message, provided that it is reproduced in its entirety and without alteration.
DATE: June 26, 2011
SUBJECT: California
TO: Naturists and other concerned citizens
Dear Naturist,
This is an Action Alert from the Naturist Action Committee. NAC is asking for your immediate involvement in an effort to have the State of California create officially designated areas for clothing-optional recreation in state parks.
CALIFORNIA STATE PARK AND RECREATION COMMISSION
The California State Park and Recreation Commission is NOT the same thing as the State Parks and Recreation Department. The Commission has specific authorities and responsibilities which are defined in California law. Those include the approval of general plans for units of the State Park System, classifying units of the System, establishing general policies for the guidance of the Director of State Parks in the administration, protection and development of the System, and recommending to the Director a comprehensive recreation policy for the state.
As allowed by law, NAC and its allies have submitted a petition asking that portions of specified state parks be set aside for clothing-optional recreation. The State Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) has had the properly submitted petition for more than a year and has not acted on it.
NAC is looking for the State Park bureaucracy to assert some leadership. The Commission has the authority and the responsibility to establish general policy and to recommend policy to DPR, and that’s what NAC is seeking.
ACTION 1: ATTEND COMMISSION’S PUBLIC MEETING ON JULY 8, 2011 If you’re in the northern California area, NAC requests that you attend a public meeting of the State Park and Recreation Commission that is scheduled to be held in Sacramento on Friday, July 8, 2011.
DATE: Friday, July 8, 2011
TIME: 9:00 a.m.
LOCATION:
first floor Auditorium
State of California Natural Resources Building
1416 9th Street
Sacramento, California
Members of the public will have the opportunity to give brief statements. But whether you speak or not, your presence is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT to lend support to the message of naturists.
We seek the setting aside of areas for clothing-optional recreation in State Park units.
There are few items on the July 8 meeting agenda, and the meeting is likely to move quickly. Please plan to be at the Natural Resources Building no later than a half hour before the meeting starts.
If you’re planning to attend the meeting, please contact:
NAC board member Allen Baylis
rab@baylislaw.com
(714) 962-0915
or NAC executive director Bob Morton
execdir@naturistaction.org
(512) 282-6621
ACTION 2: WRITE TO THE COMMISSION If you’re unable to attend the meeting, you can still help. NAC asks that you write to the Commission. Send your comments by e-mail, fax or surface mail. Those who will be at the meeting on July 8 are also encouraged to write.
WHO SHOULD WRITE?
NAC is requesting ALL NATURISTS and other concerned individuals to contact California officials on this important matter, regardless of your place of residence. California understands the importance of out-of-state visitors who come to enjoy the state’s beaches, lakes and streams. The opportunity to provide diverse recreational opportunities applies to those visitors, as well as to California residents. While all are encouraged to make their voices heard, if you’re a California resident, it’s particularly important that you identify yourself as such.
Send a letter, a fax or an e-mail. Phone calls will likely be ineffective in this specific context.
California State Park & Recreation Commission
P.O. Box 942896
Sacramento, CA 94296
FAX: (916) 654-6374
Louis Nastro, Assistant to the Commission
E-MAIL: LNastro@parks.ca.gov
Send a copy to:
California Department of Natural Resources
Natural Resources Agency
1416 Ninth Street, Suite 1311
Sacramento, CA 95814
FAX: (916) 653-8102
E-MAIL: secretary@resources.ca.gov
NAC encourages you to send copies of your faxes and paper mail to:
NAC, P.O. Box 132, Oshkosh, WI 54903.
Send copies of your e-mails to:
CA@naturistaction.org
WHAT SHOULD YOU SAY?
When you write:
a) Be polite.
b) Be known. Give your name and address. If you are a California resident or a frequent visitor to California, be sure to point that out. Anonymous letters have very little impact.
c) Be focused. Keep your correspondence brief and on target.
d) Be positive. Remember that we’re trying to ENCOURAGE the Park and Rec Commission and the Parks Department to do something. Please do not take a scolding tone.
e) Be clear. Say that you SUPPORT the petition asking for designation of clothing-optional areas in units of the State Park System.
Writing / speaking points:
a) Clothing-optional use is a publicly accepted form of recreation in California. A 2009 statewide poll commissioned by the Naturist Education Foundation and conducted by the prestigious firm of Zogby International indicates that 79% of California adults agree that people should be able to enjoy nude sunbathing on a beach or other location that is designated for that purpose. See the 2009 NEF-California Poll at: www.naturisteducation.org/nef.ca.poll.2009/
b) From that same 2009 poll of Californians, an impressive 70% believe that governments should set aside land for clothing-optional recreational use. Sixty-two percent believe specifically that the California State Park system should do so.
c) The California legislature has already established the authority for designation of clothing-optional recreation areas, under section 4322 of the California Code of Regulations. The Department of Parks and Recreation has the authority to designate TODAY, if it chose to do so.
d) The members of the Commission understand their obligation to the people. They have routinely made and recommended designations for special usages in parks throughout the State of California. Clothing-optional recreation is just another special usage.
e) For thirty years, the Parks Department’s Cahill Policy allowed a means to manage for clothing-optional recreation in units of the State Park system. The nullification of the Cahill Policy has left the department with no statewide policy to address a form of recreation that’s obviously popular with the public. The submitted petition proposes a specific way to address the management of clothing-optional recreation.
f) It is the responsibility of the Commission to advise the Department on matters of policy. We are asking the members of the Commission to act on that responsibility.
MORE INFORMATION AND RESOURCES
Additional information and links are available, along with this NAC Action Alert on the web site of the Naturist Action Committee.
www.naturistaction.org
Select "Alerts" and find this NAC Action Alert under Current Alerts.
NAC NEEDS YOUR HELP TO CONTINUE HELPING NATURISTS!
The Naturist Action Committee is the volunteer nonprofit political adjunct to The Naturist Society. NAC exists to advance and protect the rights and interests of naturists throughout North America. Fighting for the clothing-optional recreational use of public land is expensive. To do its job, NAC relies entirely on the voluntary generosity of supporters like you.
After you've sent your correspondence and/or made plans to attend the meeting in Sacramento on July 8, please take a moment to send a donation to:
NAC
PO Box 132
Oshkosh, WI 54903
Or call toll free (800) 886-7230 to donate by phone using your MasterCard, Visa or Discover Card. Or use your credit card to make a convenient online donation: www.naturistaction.org/donate/
Thank you for choosing to make a difference!
Naturally,
Allen Baylis
Director
Naturist Action Committee
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Naturist Action Committee (NAC) - PO Box 132, Oshkosh, WI 54903
Executive Dir. Bob Morton - execdir@naturistaction.org
Board Member Allen Baylis - rab@baylislaw.com
Online Rep. Dennis Kirkpatrick - naturist@sunclad.com
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