April 17, 2023
Dear Chairman Tiffany, Ranking Member Neguse and other Members of the Federal Lands Subcommittee,
We, the members of the National Parks Second Century Action Coalition1The National Parks Second Century Action Coalition is made up of organizations supporting conservation, recreation, outdoor industry, travel and tourism and historic preservation that are dedicated to promoting the protection, restoration, and enjoyment of the National Park System for the long-term benefit it offers our nation. write in support of extending funding for the National Parks and Public Lands Legacy Restoration Fund, as part of the Great American Outdoors Act, for at least five years to continue to address the maintenance needs in our national parks and other public lands.
Since passage of the Great American Outdoors Act and expenditure of the National Parks and Public Lands Restoration Fund, the National Park Service and other agencies have been hard at work addressing billions of dollars in repairs needs. Projects of all sizes are happening in parks throughout the country, including bridges, roads, water systems, electric systems, buildings and campgrounds. Recent repair projects include bathhouses at Hot Springs National Park, the parkway at Colonial National Historical Park, utility systems at Glen Canyon National Recreation Areas, water and wastewater systems at Yosemite National Park, and replace concessioner housing at Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve. After five years of projects are complete, every state in the country is expected to benefit.
The National Park Service maintains thousands of buildings, roads, trails and other infrastructure that add up to a large asset inventory that requires maintenance. Many of these facilities are very old, built when parks were established or decades ago, particularly during the Civilian Conservation Corps (1930s) and Mission 66 (1950s) eras. The passage of the Great American Outdoors Act has made great strides to address the maintenance needs in our parks, but much more is needed.
Our national parks are very popular destinations with 297 million visits in parks in 2021. By investing in our parks, Congress invests in our local economies. National park visitation generated $42.5 billion for the U.S. economy in 2021 and supported 322,000 jobs. To date, the National Parks and Public Lands Legacy Restoration Fund has provided $12.3 billion in economic output to local communities. Investing in national park infrastructure makes good sense: it creates infrastructure-related jobs, preserves our nation’s heritage for future generations, and helps local communities that depend on park tourism.
We look forward to continuing to share the successes of Congress’ investment and working with you to ensure continuation of this important funding.
Thank you for considering our views,
American Hiking Society
American Society of Landscape Architects
Atomic Heritage Foundation
Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks
The Corps Network
East Bay Regional Park District
Friends of Acadia
International Inbound Travel Association
Mission Heritage Partners
National Park Hospitality Association
National Parks Conservation Association
National Trust for Historic Preservation
Public Lands Alliance
Rocky Mountain Conservancy
Scenic America
Student Conservation Association
U.S. Travel Association
Washington’s National Park Fund
Western National Parks Association
Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts