Yet achieving those savings and turning money-losing operations into profitable ones isn't a given, as at least one neighboring state has learned.

Sanford's plan would affect parks, retail operations, golf courses, swimming areas and campgrounds. On a limited scale, private operators have already taken over some services.

Two of the facilities the governor has marked for privatization are in need of some expensive refurbishing -- money the state doesn't have in these tight fiscal times. Sanford, who unveiled his budget proposal for the 2004-2005 fiscal year last week, believes that if the state can get these properties spruced up, they will likely see more traffic.

"When you hear the buzzword 'privatization,' you need to realize that that means different things to different people," said Chad Prosser, head of the state's Parks, Recreation and Tourism Department. "It's not all about cutting, it's about increasing revenue."

Privatization is an increasingly popular strategy among those who advocate shrinking government and boosting business. It is typically deplored by government employees who stand to lose their jobs to private-sector workers.

In his new budget plan, the governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger is calling for somely deplored by government employees who stand to lose their jobs to private-sector workers.

In his new budget plan, the governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger is calling for some moves toward privatization in health care, food services and maintenance.

But even privatization's most ardent supporters agree that it must be done right to produce benefits.

For example, the Reason Foundation, one of the nation's biggest think tanks, says privatization is like any other policy tool -- it can work well or poorly, depending on how it is done. And, like other policy tools, there is plenty of argument about its virtues and vices.

South Carolina's PRT runs 46 state parks, earning $16 million in revenue from just five of its parks. The rest of the parks lose money. Sanford believes the state would realize a better return once at least some of those parks are privatized.

The governor's office said the majority of the initial savings -- $750,000 -- can be gained by privatizing Hickory Knob State Park, a 30-year-old Upstate resort that includes a motel, cabins, a campground, an 18-hole golf course and a restaurant. The resort was originally built as an economic development tool with little regard for its financial viability, according to Sanford's office. It has never made money for the state and two attempts to have the private sector run the park's restaurant were short-lived.

In the 2002-2003 fiscal year, the state lost $550,000 on Hickory Knob operations, after forking out $2.6 million.

Sanford is pushing to farm out the entire resort in a long-term agreement with a private entity.

The campground at Myrtle Beach State Park, one of the state's most profitable facilities, is also on the governor's list for privatization. Last year, the campground put about $728,000 in state coffers, a six-fold return on investment. But the site is 60 years old and in need of repaved roads and plumbing hookups for recreational vehicles.

Prosser said one of the main goals of privatization is to reinvest revenue in some of the state's more profitable parks, instead of using it to prop up money-losing properties.

The governor believes private companies can do a better job of turning a profit because they have fewer restrictions on the hiring and firing of employees and have greater flexibility when it comes to purchasing goods and services. Some of the bigger concessionaires and resort companies can realize significant savings by purchasing supplies in bulk.

Privatization is a growing trend in public schools and prisons, and the Bush administration has proposed sending up to 1,700 National Park Service jobs to the private sector, a move opposed by the nonprofit National Parks Conservation Association.

That opposition is based in part on the idea that privatization doesn't always yield the profits imagined.

Georgia has been relatively aggressive about privatizing its parks in deals that have achieved mixed results. In 1997, the state signed a 20-year agreement with a Colorado-based resort company to operate three state park lodges. A little more than three years later, after making $3.3 million in capital improvements, the company broke the agreement.

On the other hand, Georgia also has contracted a company to consolidate its park reservation system, a deal that is expected to be a financial plus to the state.

Marion Edmonds, a PRT spokesman, said the agency will strive to become more businesslike and efficient in running the parks that remain in its charge. Since Prosser took over in April, PRT has cut about 40 full-time employees and scaled back the equivalent of 89 additional full-time positions. The department also bought out 12 full-timers and left 29 unfilled positions unfilled. It now employs about 500 people.

Edmonds said the state doesn't plan to unload all of its parks, and will retain even those it views as "loss leaders."

"We're not talking about (privatizing) the historic sites and we're not talking about (privatizing) the valuable natural areas," Edmonds said. "Those are a state responsibility and a state trust, important to our identity and culture."

The state's 47 retail outlets can also benefit from some restructuring, according to Sanford's office.

Shutting down some of the stores and signing up a company to develop a statewide computer system to track inventory and sales can bring about $200,000 to the state, the governor's office said.

Along those lines, the state shut down the Charles Towne Landing cafeteria this month and replaced it with vending machines, a move designed to save taxpayers $60,000 on top of staffing cuts that will save it even more. The concession lost $45,000 in its last full year of operation. Now, the state receives 32 percent of gross receipts from the concession and expects $15,000 in annual revenue from the deal.

Sanford's administration also hopes to cut staffing costs and increase revenue by implementing a statewide reservation system for campgrounds, cabins and motel rooms. Currently, visitors need to call individual parks to make sleeping arrangements.

Whether the General Assembly will OK Sanford's recommendations remains to be seen, and PRT is just beginning to look at private companies interested in taking over the proposed services and sites.

Prosser said the $1.4 million savings assumed by Sanford is ambitious but achievable.

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