Copyright 2000 Federal News Service, Inc.
Federal News Service
March 29, 2000, Wednesday
SECTION: PREPARED TESTIMONY
LENGTH: 3666 words
HEADLINE:
PREPARED STATEMENT BY ROBERT G. STANTON
BEFORE THE
HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE INTERIOR SUBCOMMITTEE
SUBJECT - CONSIDERING THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2001
BODY:
Mr. Chairman, and members of the
Subcommittee, I welcome the opportunity to appear before you to discuss the
fiscal year 2001 budget request of the National Park Service.
At the
outset, let me say that it has been a pleasure to work with this Subcommittee
over the years in our joint effort to preserve and protect America's natural and
cultural heritage for the benefit and enjoyment of all citizens. On behalf of
the many employees of the National Park Service and the public we serve, I wish
to express my appreciation to you and the Subcommittee members for your
involvement, your valued contributions, and your steadfast support to the cause
of the national parks and our charge to manage this Nation's premier park
resources. I commend you, Mr. Chairman, and this Subcommittee for your efforts
to support the national parks through fee legislation which has enabled the
National Park Service to make credible and substantive improvements in
addressing the maintenance and resource protection backlogs. Our recent efforts
have focused on streamlining the review process and expediting the obligation of
fee funding for project and program needs at our parks. We are showing some
progress in this area. Mr. Chairman, in addition to receiving significant
benefit from the fee program for the betterment of the national parks, the NPS
has also undertaken, with the support and guidance of the Department and the
Subcommittee, a number of measures to improve our management and accountability
systems. We continue to work towards improving our day- to-day practices to
ensure the public receives the best possible service and results. We have goren
better at identifying what our needs are and being able to justify why
investments are needed to sustain our park system and programs. All of our parks
and offices are engaged in a massive effort to effect and fully meet the
requirements of the Government Performance and Results Act. This budget
continues our efforts to link budget requests to accomplishment of our strategic
goals. Closely aligned to the budget request is the NPS Annual Performance Plan
for fiscal year 2001, developed pursuant to the Government Performance and
Results Act (GPRA). The Annual Performance Plan expresses the goals that the NPS
expects to achieve during FY 2001. Fulfilling these goals depends on funding
received, among other factors.
The goals for 2001 have been refined on
the basis of actual performance results from the NPS Annual Performance Report
for fiscal year 1999, the first such report issued. Submission of our first
Annual Performance Report represents a milestone in the Park Service's
increasing understanding and expanding implementation of GPRA, and reflects how
much the NPS has learned during the past several years about making performance
management work as its business system.
We have also continued a
National Parks Business Plan Initiative in a number of pilot parks that analyzes
and documents the past, present, and future financial condition of the park. The
Business Plan Initiative was conceived to take the first steps toward clarifying
park financial status to a degree that the Congress or the public can understand
the financial inputs and outputs of the parks, and identify any shortfalls or
inefficiencies that need to be addressed. We are working to develop quantitative
operational standards to be used as a measure of where a park should be versus
current operational levels. We are pleased to report to you that all 12 pilot
parks have completed the data collection phase and initial analysis, and we
expect that these parks will have their final products completed and available
for review during the second quarter of this fiscal year.
OVERVIEW
The fiscal year 2001 budget request of $2.042 billion
in appropriated funds for the National Park Service reflects a net increase of
$233 million above the fiscal year 2000 enacted level. This
budget supports the NPS mission and related goals as expressed in the 1916
Organic Act, the National Park Service Strategic Plan, and the FY 2001 Annual
Performance Plan. Specifics of the NPS .budget include a request of
$317.5 million for the President's Lands Legacy
Initiative, and funding increases of $27.6 million for
park operations to address shortfalls in a number of program areas;
$18.5 million for the Natural Resource Challenge to support
ongoing efforts to improve the management and stewardship of the Service's
natural resource programs; $2.3 million to fund cultural
resource program needs including funds for continued protection of damaged or
degraded historic and prehistoric resources in desert southwest parks; and
$1.3 million for expanded partnerships with Native American
communities. In addition, our request seeks balanced and appropriate funding
levels to continue needed maintenance and infrastructure improvements within our
construction and maintenance accounts.
Mr. Chairman, of the many
milestones in the Nation's conservation history - the creation of the National
Park Service stands as one of the most visionary and far-reaching, Through the
proposals and provisions identified in this budget, we have the unique
opportunity to build on this historic endeavor and move closer to ensuring that
the national parks are preserved as a celebrated legacy for all time. As I sit
before you, Iam mindful of the National Park Service mission, and challenged by
the goals that I have set for myself which are centered on strengthening our
preservation programs, improving services to a record 290 million visitors,
expanding our partnership efforts, diversifying our workforce to reflect more
accurately the face of America at every park, and engaging the Nation's youth in
the many programs and activities of the National Park Service. I believe, and am
confident, that the budget before you and the interests I have articulated do in
fact convey the Service's highest priorities at this time.
In the years
that I have served as Director of the National Park Service, I have visited many
park units, met with a great number of the 20,000 employees who labor on behalf
of the public, and have spoken to many visitors to the parks. I come away from
each experience renewed in mind and spirit; awed by the scenery, history, and
culture we strive to protect; and personally inspired by the dedication, loyalty
and commitment of our employees. This exposure has allowed me the opportunity to
appreciate fully the honor of this position and the unparalleled opportunity to
serve in this capacity.
Prior year budgets that we have presented to
this Subcommittee have requested added funding to: shore up the System's
deteriorating infrastructure in an effort to improve the safety of visitors and
our employees; allow for needed enhancements to our administrative capability in
an effort to enable broader access to the parks by a wider audience; expand
support of programs external to the NPS, but critical to the long-term survival
and viability of the national parks; and strengthen the overall capability of
our resource stewardship programs which will positively impact our mission. Our
achievements in these specific areas have been recognized and noted by the
public as evidenced by their continued and overwhelming support and their
participation in the many programs and activities of the National Park Service.
This budget continues these commitments.
I believe that the
national parks are basic to the Nation's character: they are representative of
our people and our culture; they are reflective of our civilization; and they
are symbols of the freedoms we champion, and the heritage we all share. Guided
by the mandate that the parks be managed for public use in such manner and by
such means as will leave them unimpaired, the NPS offers a comprehensive program
of interpretation, maintenance, resource and visitor protection services to an
estimated 290 million visitors annually at 379 units. Our increase request this
year of $90.3 million for the Operation of the National Park
System appropriation responds to continued demands in these visitor service and
resource management areas. Within this total is a request of
$24.050 million and 300 FTE to address a number of specific
operating needs at 72park units, three trails, two foundations and the U.S Park
Police; and an increase of $3.4 million and 41 FTE at 17 parks
as part of the Natural Resource Challenge to address species protection as part
of a larger effort to assist in native and threatened and endangered species
recovery. Also included is a request of $2.0 million for coral
reef protections at ten parks focusing on activities required to implement
Executive Order 13089 (Coral Reef Protection) where the funding will target
threatened coral reef resources at park units in the Pacific West and Southeast
Regions; $1.472 million at nine parks to begin preparation for
the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial celebration where the funding will be used to
develop educational and interpretive, resource protection, and visitor safety
programs; $644,000 for Native American Partnerships at two
parks to provide new opportunities for cooperative resource conservation
programs between the National Park Service and Indian tribes; and
$450,000 to respond to security needs at four units of the
National Park System. This funding will be used at park areas that have
identified a wide range of operating needs, including the need to increase
operating hours at visitor centers, increase the offerings of tours and
programs, fill key positions, continue educational partnerships with schools and
outreach organizations, address increasing threats to safety due to deteriorated
infrastructure, the need for increased patrols, and the need to address
retention issues for the U.S. Park Police.
Mr. Chairman, throughout the
85-year growth and evolution of the National Park System, the Congress has
included a number of designations for national park areas, i.e., natural,
historical, recreational. Natural area is the oldest of park designations, and
is anchored in the 1872 establishment of Yellowstone National Park. Today, the
number of parks containing important natural resources totals approximately 270.
I believe that the needs and requirements of these areas are fundamental to the
survival of the National Park System, and central to our meeting the "in
perpetuity" mandate ascribed under the 1916 Organic Act. In support of this
effort, and in response to the many complex issues and challenges confronting
these parks, I have made a priority during my tenure, a program to improve the
quality and integrity of our natural resource base. To do that, this budget
proposes increased funding of $18.5 million for the Service's
second year investment in the Natural Resource Challenge-- an initiative that
has been summarized in a comprehensive 5-year action plan designed to strengthen
the capability of the Service's resource stewardship program and satisfy the
critical and much broader preservation mission of the NPS. Over the years, the
Park Service has shifted its concept of natural resources management from simple
protection of individual features or species to the preservation of total
environments and landscapes. The NPS recognizes that the protection and
preservation of natural parks is dependent upon the preservation of broad-scale
natural resource components and of the dynamic processes which generate and
sustain them.
The Natural Resource Challenge highlights a new program
direction for the Service and places a higher priority and renewed emphasis on
on- the-ground services that will strengthen employee skills and secure the
resources needed to respond adequately and appropriately to the deterioration of
natural resources. This initiative will provide the NPS with an integrated,
results-oriented framework for implementing and assessing processes for managing
park operations. Findings and other results of this effort will be useful in
addressing future challenges to the NPS and will enable park managers to
communicate this information to others and integrate it into the broader
decision- making process.
The NPS has worked closely with the U.S.
Geological Survey in framing the DOI FY 2001 science priorities, which includes
funding in the USGS budget to support National Park Service resource management
needs. The NPS recommends full funding of the USGS science request.
To
address expanded needs in cultural heritage preservation, we have requested
additional funding of $2.310 million for the cultural resources
management program. Included in the total is $1.0 million which
we propose to use to accelerate cataloging and preservation measures within the
collections management program; $1.0 million to initiate a
systematic program to digitize images of the Service's archival and museum
collections and make these accessible to the public; and an additional
$310,000 to provide continued support of the Vanishing
Treasures Initiative, with the increase being provided for emergencyprojects and
for the preservation and treatment of prehistoric and historic sites in three
desert southwest parks: Aztec Ruins National Monument, Casa Grande Ruins
National Monument, and El Morro National Monument.
As mentioned earlier,
and central to this budget, is our request for funding in support of the
President's Lands Legacy Initiative. We are asking the
Committee to approve a $317.5 million funding program to
protect land resources at the Federal, State, and local government levels. The
President, in his January State of the Union Address, called for your assistance
and support by stating, "As our communities grow, our commitment to conservation
must continue to grow. Tonight, I propose creating a permanent conservation
fund, to restore wildlife, protect coastlines, save natural treasures, from the
California redwoods to the Florida Everglades. This Lands Legacy endowment would
represent by far the most enduring investment in !and preservation ever
proposed...This is a gift we should give our children and our grandchildren for
all time...". The need, I believe, is undeniable. The request would provide
$170 million in matching grants to State and local governments
to strengthen their public land protection and recreation programs under the
L&WCF State Grant and the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Programs; and
would provide $147.5 million for the Service's priority !and
acquisition needs which are critical to long- term management of the national
parks. This year's budget would help fulfill the Secretary's pledge to complete
the purchase of lands within the boundaries of Civil War sites including funding
increases for such parks as Gettysburg National Military Park, Fredericksburg
and Spotsylvania County Battlefields Memorial National Military Park, and
Manassas National Battlefield Park. Additionally, priority land purchases will
be effected at Great Sand Dunes National Monument, two Southern California parks
(Santa Monica National Recreation Area, and Mojave National Preserve), Delaware
Water Gap National Recreation Area, and at Nez Perce National Historical Park
for land needs associated with celebration of the bicentennial of the 1804 -1806
Lewis and Clark Expedition. We will also maintain the current high level of
effort dedicated to restoration of the South Florida ecosystem.
Our
request of $30 million for millennium grants will enable the
Service to continue at the FY 2000 enacted level for the Save America's
Treasures program. This funding will be used to address some of the Nation's
most urgent preservation needs as identified by Federal agencies, State
governments, and Indian tribes, to protect the historical and cultural resources
that are America's treasures. Matching grants will be made available and awarded
competitively to assist Federal and non-Federal entities preserve the nationally
significant cultural resources under their stewardship.
Mr. Chairman,
the National Park Service mission is such that major funding efforts must be
devoted to park-oriented programs, particularly those involving the protection
and preservation of park values, and the provision of services and facilities
for the protection, comfort and safety of the increasing number of park
visitors. Key components of the Service's FY 2001 budget focus on infrastructure
improvements, i.e., a systematic program that allows for the continuation or
completion of ongoing construction projects, the planning and development of
needed new facilities, and the restoration/rehabilitation of existing structures
and facilities, including historic properties that have undergone decline or
deterioration. The latest physical inventory assigns responsibility to the
National Park System for approximately 18,000 buildings and housing units, and
more than 2,000 complex maintenance systems, as well as a number of other
special features. These assets must ali be maintained at an operational level
that ensures continued protection, preservation, serviceability, and use by the
public. The FY 2001 budget includes a request of $108.4 million
for line-item construction and the Service's Regional Maintenance Programs
(cyclic, repair and rehabilitation, and cultural cyclic) include a request of
$90.2 million for renovation, restoration, and rehabilitation
project needs. As you know, our specific action in each of these areas is guided
by the 5-year planning process established by the Department of the Interior.
Added revenue made available from fee and other sources for specified
maintenance and resource protection projects, I believe, will keep us on course
in addressing requirements in these areas.Effective implementation of the
Department's Five-Year Maintenance and Construction Plan and long-term
improvement of the NPS facilities requires better data on current conditions as
well as a maintenance management system that can provide consistent reliable
maintenance information to managers and to Congress. The NPS FY 2001 budget
includes $1.0 million for ongoing condition assessments and
$2.0 million for continued development of the NPS maintenance
management system.
To further the Service's effort to improve the
infrastructure of the national parks, other funding sources are tapped to
address requirements related to the more than 8,000 miles of public park roads
and 1,861 bridges and tunnels under the jurisdiction of the National Park
Service. About 60 percent of the roads are paved. These roads serve recreational
travel and tourism by national and international visitors, protect and enhance
natural resources, and provide sustained economic development in rural/urban
areas surrounding parks. Legislation enacted through the. Transportation
Department will provide $165 million annually from 1999 through
2003 for the Park Roads and Parkways through the Federal Lands Highway Program.
The funding will be used by the NPS to address critical needs in these three
categories: $120 to $125 million annually to
prevent further deterioration of existing park roads and parkways
infrastructure; $25 to $35 million annually to
complete the gaps in the congressionally authorized parkways; and
$5 to $15 million annually for alternative
transportation systems.
Our budget also proposes a restructure of the
Park Management activity within the Operation of the National Park System
appropriation that will serve to highlight the needs, requirements, and
responsibilities of the United States Park Police. As a result of this
restructure, a new United States Park Police subactivity has been created within
Park Management. To support this new activity, we are requesting an increase of
$1.5 million for the USPP that will be used to address pay and
benefit issues and improve the work environment of officers and other employees.
This action has been taken to reflect the interests and concerns of both the
Administration and this Subcommittee, but more importantly signals our
longstanding commitment to ensuring the safety and security of our personnel and
our visitors.
This budget also includes increases for management
improvements that focus on improved accountability, web-based information
management, park partnerships and business practices, and resource inventories.
We have also included in this budget a request for minimal funding of our
administrative and information systems to continue to meet, take advantage of,
and comply with the many advances in information technology. The NPS believes
that to protect better the national parks, information about these resources,
the threats we face, and what can be done to protect the parks must be made
available to a wider audience who we believe is both willing and eager for this
information to assist and support the agency in protecting America's heritage
resources. These efforts, I am confident, will further the mission of the NPS
and directly complement ongoing management activities.
In closing, I
believe the objectives we have proposed for the coming year, bring to the
forefront the programs that will best enable us to fulfill our commitments in
carrying out our legislative mandate and the directives of the Administration in
preserving and protecting the resources of the System and providing quality park
opportunities for millions of Americans. With your continued support and
leadership, the Service's FY 2001 budget will be a positive contribution towards
that end and will have longstanding im. pact on the National Park Service. We
can take justifiable pride in this legacy and reinforce the foundation that will
help our successors meet the even greater challenges that will inevitably lie
ahead.
Mr. Chairman, that concludes my prepared remarks. I will be
pleased to answer any questions you or other members of the Subcommittee may
have.
END
LOAD-DATE: March 30, 2000
