The Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD), officially known (in state law) as the State Parks and Recreation Department, is the government

State government

A state government is the government of a subnational entity in a federal form of government, which shares political power with the federal or national government. A state government may have some level of political autonomy, or be subject to the direct control of the federal government...

 agency of the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

 which operates its system of state park

State park

State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...

s. In addition, it has programs to protect and provide public access to natural and historic resources within the state, including the State Historic Preservation Office, Oregon Heritage Commission, Oregon Commission on Historic Cemeteries, Recreation Trails, the Ocean Shores Recreation Area, Scenic Waterways and the Willamette River Greenway. The Department's chief sources of funding are the Oregon Lottery

Oregon Lottery

The Oregon Lottery is run by the government of Oregon. It is a member of the Multi-State Lottery Association .- History :The Oregon Lottery was enabled by an amendment to the Oregon Constitution, approved by voters in the 1984 general election. The Lottery began the next year, eventually offering...

, state park user fees and recreation vehicle license fees. The Department also manages the system of rest areas along the highways and freeways within the state. In 2006 the department was delegated responsibility for managing the Oregon State Fair

Oregon State Fair

-National Register of Historic Places:The state fairground is the site of two historic buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Oregon State Fair Stadium and Poultry Building Ensemble. The 1919 horse stadium and the 1921 poultry building were added to the register in 2002...

.

The department was created in 1921 as a branch of the Oregon Highway Department (predecessor to the present-day Oregon Department of Transportation

Oregon Department of Transportation

The Oregon Department of Transportation is a department of the state government of the U.S. state of Oregon responsible for systems of transportation. It was first established in 1969. It had been preceded by the Oregon State Highway Department which, along with the Oregon State Highway...

). The 1989 Oregon Legislative Assembly

Oregon Legislative Assembly

The Oregon Legislative Assembly is the state legislature for the U.S. state of Oregon. The Legislative Assembly is bicameral, consisting of an upper and lower house: the Senate, whose 30 members are elected to serve four-year terms; and the House of Representatives, with 60 members elected to...

transferred authority to a newly created department under its current name effective January 1, 1990.

Oregon parks attract more than 42 million visitors annually, ranking fifth in the U.S. in number of day use park visitors, and eighth in number of overnight visitors.