[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5230 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5230

 To require a revision of criteria, policies, and practices regarding 
      the provision of housing to National Park Service employees.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 6, 1994

  Mr. Vento introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require a revision of criteria, policies, and practices regarding 
      the provision of housing to National Park Service employees.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``National Park Service Employee 
Housing Program Act of 1994''.

SEC. 2. REQUIREMENTS REGARDING PROVISION OF HOUSING TO EMPLOYEES.

    The Secretary of the Interior (in this Act referred to as the 
``Secretary''), acting through the Director of the National Park 
Service, shall, in accordance with this Act and section 5911 of title 
5, United States Code--
            (1) provide housing to employees of the National Park 
        Service only when and where such housing is necessary and 
        justified; and
            (2) ensure that such housing, if necessary and justified, 
        is available and adequate.

SEC. 3. REVIEW AND REVISION OF HOUSING CRITERIA.

    (a) In General.--Upon the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
shall review and revise the existing criteria under which housing is 
provided to employees of the National Park Service. The review and 
revision shall include consideration of the following criteria:
            (1) Required occupancy (whether and under what 
        circumstances the Park Service requires, as a condition of 
        employment, that an employee live at a particular site or in a 
        specific geographic area). For each instance in which occupancy 
        is required, full consideration shall be given to the concept 
        of adequate response time.
            (2) Availability and adequacy of non-Federal housing in the 
        geographic area, including consideration of the degree of 
        isolation (the time and distance that separate other potential 
        housing from the workplace of a Park Service employee).
            (3) Category of employment (seasonal or permanent).
            (4) Any other factor that the Secretary considers 
        appropriate.
    (b) Submission of Report.--A report detailing the results of the 
revisions required by subsection (a) shall be submitted to the 
Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives and the 
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate not later than 
180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. The report shall 
include justifications for keeping, or for changing, each of the 
criteria or factors used by the Department of the Interior with regard 
to the provision of housing to employees of the National Park Service.

SEC. 4. REVIEW OF CONDITION OF AND COSTS RELATING TO HOUSING.

    (a) In General.--Using the revised criteria developed under section 
3, the Secretary shall undertake a review, for each unit of the 
National Park System, of existing government-owned housing provided to 
employees of the National Park Service. The review shall include an 
assessment of the physical condition of such housing and the 
suitability of such housing to effectively carry out the missions of 
the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service. For each 
unit of such housing, the Secretary shall determine whether the unit is 
needed and justified. The review shall include estimates of the cost of 
bringing each such unit that is needed and justified into usable 
condition that meets all applicable legal housing requirements or, if 
the unit is determined to be obsolete but is still warranted to carry 
out the missions of the Department of the Interior and the National 
Park Service, the cost of replacing the unit.
    (b) Submission of Report and Proposed Plan.--The Secretary shall 
submit a report detailing the results of the review required by 
subsection (a), and a proposed plan to meet the housing needs of 
employees of the National Park Service, to the Committee on Natural 
Resources of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Energy 
and Natural Resources of the Senate not later than 1 year after the 
date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 5. ALTERNATIVES TO MEET HOUSING NEEDS.

    (a) Authorization for Housing Agreements.--For those units of the 
National Park Service for which the review required by section 4 has 
been completed, the Secretary is authorized to enter into housing 
agreements with housing entities under which such housing entities may 
develop, construct, rehabilitate, or manage housing, located on or off 
public lands, for rent or lease to National Park Service employees who 
meet the housing eligibility criteria developed by the Secretary 
pursuant to this Act. In entering such housing agreements, the 
Secretary may guarantee to such entities a reasonable rate of occupancy 
of rental units. The authority granted by this subsection is in 
addition to the authorities of the Secretary to acquire or construct 
housing for employees of the National Park Service using appropriated 
funds.
    (b) Limitation on Placement of Housing.--Housing made available on 
public lands pursuant to subsection (a) shall be located only in areas 
designated for administrative use.
    (c) Prohibition of Aquisition Without Consent.--No private lands, 
or interests therein, located outside the boundaries of a Federally 
administered area may be acquired pursuant to this Act without the 
consent of the owner thereof.
    (d) Study Regarding Housing Allowances.--The Secretary shall 
undertake a study to determine the feasibility of providing eligible 
employees of the National Park Service with housing allowances rather 
than government housing. If the Secretary finds, pursuant to the study, 
that the provision of such allowances would be beneficial to the 
Federal Government, the Secretary is authorized to institute a program 
for the provision of the allowances, subject to the availability of 
funds.
    (e) Definition.--For purposes of this section, the term ``housing 
entity'' means an individual who, or a public or private corporation or 
organization that, the Secretary finds is qualified to provide and 
capable of providing housing.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary to carry out this Act.
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