The State Parks and Recreation Commission sets policy for the department and has specific authority to purchase and sell property and set fees for use of parks facilities.
Members serve rotating four-year terms and are appointed by the governor, with senate confirmation.
The seven-member commission represents citizens from each of Oregon's five congressional districts, as well as citizens on the east side of the Cascade Range and citizens west of the summit of the Coastal Range. The Oregon Heritage Commission consists of nine citizen members appointed by the governor and eight ex officio members. The Pioneer Cemetery Commission is charged with promoting public education on the historical significance of pioneer cemeteries, which are defined as burial places for one or more persons who died before February 14, 1909.