Dear Auduboner:

Audubon's 1999-2000 budget is a growth budget that represents another major step forward in implementing our Strategic Plan to make Audubon the leading national organization focused on environmental education, and the most effective public policy advocate for birds, wildlife and habitat.

Various concerns have been raised about the budget as it affects advocacy. Contrary to what you may have heard, the budget proposed by staff and approved unanimously by the Board increases our overall expenditures for public policy advocacy both in the Washington, D.C. office and in the field. At the national level, Dan Beard, the director of our D.C. office, will work with the Public Policy Committee of the Board to use these funds to address Audubon's most pressing advocacy issues during the coming year. Likewise, our respective state directors will work with their local state boards, councils and chapters to direct each state's advocacy funding to its most pressing issues. At the national level, we have increased our expenditures substantially over the past five years for advocacy campaigns and other public policy issues.

         1995-1996 -- $3,358,362
         1996-1997 -- $3,943,822
         1997-1998 -- $5,407,164
         1998-1999 -- $5,663,436
         1999-2000 -- $5,975,723

We are not eliminating any of our ongoing campaigns at this time. However, we regularly adjust the level of resources we commit to individual campaigns based on the relative urgency of each issue.

In addition to increased activity at the national level, we have opened 21 states offices with total combined budgets of approximately $18 million. While the amount varies among states, a substantial portion of those state budgets is now committed to public policy advocacy. As we do at the national level, we expect that state programs will make ongoing adjustments in the relative allocation of state advocacy resources based on the changing urgency of these issues.

Particular concerns have been raised regarding our future involvement with the Endangered Species Act. The ESA is absolutely essential to our effort to protect birds, other wildlife and their habitats. No single piece of federal legislation has done more to drive conservation decisions over the past two decades than the ESA. Audubon remains committed to an Endangered Species Act that is well-funded, properly implemented, and strongly enforced.

Audubon's Endangered Species Campaign was started four years ago to protect the Act from those who want to weaken its provisions through federal legislation. Hard work by Audubon and other conservation organizations repelled these efforts. The dark days of the 104th Congress, when repeal of ESA seemed possible, are now a memory. While sporadic efforts to weaken the Act will continue, large-scale legislative assaults have no realistic chance of being enacted in the current legislative climate.

In short, the conservation community has stopped the onslaught, but we must remain vigilant against efforts to weaken the Act. Our Washington, D.C. staff has done a remarkable job of directing Audubon's efforts on endangered species over the past four years. Their passion and commitment enabled us to have a forceful presence on the issue. We are not eliminating the Endangered Species Campaign. However, our emphasis on this issue, as with other issues, will change from year to year to reflect what is happening in Congress. Since we do not anticipate congressional action in the coming year, we have the opportunity to redirect some of these funds to other, more critical legislative fights. Dan Beard will be the point person for you to contact in the future on ESA matters at the national level.

Furthermore, the most difficult problems facing our work on endangered species now arise at the state level. The Clinton Administration has effectively "amended" the ESA administratively and the major problems we face in the future are to make sure habitat conservation plans (HCPs) guarantee species recovery, are scientifically justified and will be enforced over time. To meet this challenge, we'll have to work at the state level to make sure HCPs are developed and implemented consistent with sound science and policy. That work is best handled through our Audubon field staff, chapter leaders and volunteers.

Audubon's Washington, D.C. staff, under the direction of Dan Beard, will have the responsibility to continue our participation in the Endangered Species coalition and to monitor legislative developments. If conditions in Washington change significantly, we are committed to take whatever action is deemed appropriate to protect the Endangered Species Act.

Some questions were also raised about the Wetlands Campaign. This campaign remains a high priority for Audubon. We received a major boost when The David & Lucile Packard Foundation awarded us a grant for wetlands. That grant ended this year, but we are confident that we will be able to continue the campaign at about the same level next year.

There were also questions about Eric Draper's future role in Audubon. As we all know, Eric is a superb advocate. For personal reasons, Eric has chosen to live in Florida. A large part of his work over the past couple of years has also been in Florida, particularly involving the Everglades. This year, as part of our continuing decentralization of Audubon, we consolidated all of our staff and programs in Florida, including the Everglades Campaign, under Stuart Strahl as Florida State Director. Eric has taken a new position directing advocacy programs for the Florida State program.

The transfer of the Everglades Campaign to the Florida state office is similar to how we have decentralized other national advocacy campaigns. For example, the Platte River, Garrison Diversion, and Arctic National Wildlife Refuge campaigns are now being led by our newly established state offices with back-up from our Washington, D. C. staff. Our other ongoing national campaigns, such as Wetlands, Refuges, Endangered Species, Forest Habitat, Population and Heritage Forest campaigns will now report directly to Dan Beard instead of to Eric Draper.

We now have a request of you. In the future, when you hear information which concerns you, please contact us directly to get the facts. We may not always agree on everything, but at least you will be able to take informed action. In turn, we will make every effort to improve our communication of information at all levels of the organization, as well as to consider your informed input in our budgeting and other processes.

We remain committed to implementing our Strategic Plan to make Audubon the leading national organization focused on environmental education, and the most effective public policy advocate for birds, wildlife and habitat. We look forward to working with you to accomplish our common mission.

Sincerely,
Donal C. O'Brien, Jr., Chairman of the Board
John Flicker, President