[Senate Hearing 118-336]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 118-336
THE PRESIDENT'S BUDGET REQUEST FOR THE
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE FOR FISCAL YEAR
2025 AND PENDING LEGISLATION
=======================================================================
HEARING
BEFORE THE
SUBCOMMITTEE ON
NATIONAL PARKS
OF THE
COMMITTEE ON
ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
on
S. 2620 S. 3534 S. 4222
S. 2742 S. 3542 S. 4227
S. 2743 S. 3543 S. 4228
S. 2784 S. 3568/H.R.3448 S. 4259
S. 3195 S. 4129 H.R. 359
S. 3241 S. 4209 H.R. 2717
S. 3251 S. 4216 H.R. 4984
S. 3474 S. 4218
__________
MAY 15, 2024
__________
[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Printed for the use of the
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.govinfo.gov
__________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
55-898 WASHINGTON : 2025
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
COMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES
JOE MANCHIN III, West Virginia, Chairman
RON WYDEN, Oregon JOHN BARRASSO, Wyoming
MARIA CANTWELL, Washington JAMES E. RISCH, Idaho
BERNARD SANDERS, Vermont MIKE LEE, Utah
MARTIN HEINRICH, New Mexico STEVE DAINES, Montana
MAZIE K. HIRONO, Hawaii LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska
ANGUS S. KING, JR., Maine JOHN HOEVEN, North Dakota
CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO, Nevada BILL CASSIDY, Louisiana
JOHN W. HICKENLOOPER, Colorado CINDY HYDE-SMITH, Mississippi
ALEX PADILLA, California JOSH HAWLEY, Missouri
------
Subcommittee on National Parks
ANGUS S. KING, JR., Chair
BERNARD SANDERS STEVE DAINES
MARTIN HEINRICH MIKE LEE
MAZIE K. HIRONO LISA MURKOWSKI
ALEX PADILLA CINDY HYDE-SMITH
Renae Black, Staff Director
Sam E. Fowler, Chief Counsel
David Brooks, General Counsel
Katie Roberts. Research Assistant
Justin J. Memmott, Republican Staff Director
Patrick J. McCormick III, Republican Chief Counsel
John Tanner, Republican Deputy Staff Director for Lands
Samantha Barnett, Republican Legislative Assistant
C O N T E N T S
----------
OPENING STATEMENTS
Page
King, Jr., Hon. Angus S., Subcommittee Chairman and a U.S.
Senator from Maine............................................. 1
Daines, Hon. Steve, Subcommittee Ranking Member and a U.S.
Senator from Montana........................................... 13
Padilla, Hon. Alex, a U.S. Senator from California............... 31
Van Hollen, Hon. Chris, a U.S. Senator from Maryland............. 32
Lankford, Hon. James, a U.S. Senator from Oklahoma............... 160
WITNESS
Caldwell, Michael A., Associate Director, Park Planning,
Facilities, and Lands, National Park Service, U.S. Department
of the Interior; accompanied by Kym Hall, Regional Director,
National Park Service.......................................... 165
ALPHABETICAL LISTING AND APPENDIX MATERIAL SUBMITTED
Ad Hoc LLC:
Letter for the Record........................................ 36
Alexander, Maya:
Letter for the Record........................................ 99
Anderson, Heidi M.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 152
Anne Arundel Economic Development Corporation:
Letter for the Record........................................ 42
Archery Trade Association et al.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 283
Ball, Hon. Calvin:
Letter for the Record........................................ 88
Beach to Bay Heritage Area:
Letter for the Record........................................ 47
Bell, Thomas and Sandra:
Letter for the Record........................................ 5
Blacks of the Chesapeake Foundation:
Letter for the Record........................................ 48
Blue Ridge Watershed Coalition et al.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 158
Bowser, Hon. Muriel:
Statement for the Record..................................... 285
Brandywine Foundation:
Letter for the Record........................................ 51
Buckley, Hon. Gavin:
Letter for the Record........................................ 38
Bynum, Hon. G.T.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 241
Caldwell, Michael A.:
Opening Statement............................................ 165
Written Testimony............................................ 169
Responses to Questions for the Record........................ 237
Calvert County (MD) Board of Commissioners:
Letter for the Record........................................ 52
CalWild et al.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 292
Capital Region Land Conservancy:
Letter for the Record........................................ 55
Cassidy, Chris:
Statement for the Record..................................... 294
Charles County (MD) Board of Commissioners:
Letter for the Record........................................ 57
Chesapeake Bay Foundation:
Letter for the Record........................................ 59
Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum:
Letter for the Record........................................ 61
Chesapeake Conservancy:
Letter for the Record........................................ 63
Chesapeake Legal Alliance:
Letter for the Record........................................ 65
Chestertown, MD (Town of):
Letter for the Record........................................ 67
Choose Clean Water Coalition:
Letter for the Record........................................ 68
Clement, Hon. Kevin R.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 217
(The) Coalition to Protect America's National Parks:
Letter for the Record........................................ 69
Cook, Hon. Megan J.M.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 74
Crutcher, Tiffany et al.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 252
Daines, Hon. Steve:
Opening Statement............................................ 13
Photograph of Walter `Blackie' Wetzel and Senator Robert F.
Kennedy from the 1960s..................................... 14
Photograph of logo designed by Walter `Blackie' Wetzel next
to photograph of Blackfeet Chief Two Guns White Calf....... 15
Photograph of a football helmet displaying logo designed by
Walter `Blackie' Wetzel.................................... 16
Letter from Ryan H. Wetzel addressed to the Washington
Commanders organization, dated May 13, 2024................ 19
Letter from the Montana Native Women's Coalition addressed to
Senator Daines............................................. 20
Great Falls Tribune article entitled ``Who was Walter
`Blackie' Wetzel, the Blackfeet Man Behind the Washington
Football Team's Logo'' by Nora Mabie, published on July 23,
2020....................................................... 22
Excerpts from ``George Allen: A Football Life'' by Mike
Richman, University of Nebraska Press, 2023................ 28
Dockshare:
Letter for the Record........................................ 72
Elfreth, Hon. Sarah:
Letter for the Record........................................ 139
Elrich, Hon. Marc:
Letter for the Record........................................ 105
Evangelical Environmental Network:
Letter for the Record........................................ 296
Fitzwater, Hon. Jessica:
Letter for the Record........................................ 80
Fort Monroe Authority:
Letter for the Record........................................ 78
Friends of Pierce Mill:
Letter for the Record........................................ 81
Gibson, Hon. Dan M.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 227
Graham, Chad L.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 297
Greater Salisbury Committee:
Letter for the Record........................................ 84
Hall-Harper, Hon. Vanessa:
Letter for the Record........................................ 248
Heath, Bishop C.K. et al.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 255
Hispanic Access Foundation:
Letter for the Record........................................ 85
Historic Annapolis:
Letter for the Record........................................ 87
Historic Greenwood District-Black Wall Street Coalition:
Statement for the Record..................................... 161
Hoeven, Hon. John:
Statement for the Record..................................... 240
Hogan, Hon. Larry:
Letter for the Record........................................ 75
Hopkinson, Chris:
Letter for the Record........................................ 45
Hoskin, Jr., Hon. Chuck:
Letter for the Record........................................ 245
Jackson, Randy D.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 11
James River Association:
Letter for the Record........................................ 89
Jefferson County Parks and Recreation Commission:
Letter for the Record........................................ 91
Jones, Dana:
Letter for the Record........................................ 71
Katahdin Chamber of Commerce:
Letter for the Record........................................ 6
Katahdin Collaborative:
Letter for the Record........................................ 8
King, Jr., Hon. Angus S.:
Opening Statement............................................ 1
Map displaying the Katahdin Woods and Waters National
Monument Authorized Acquisition Area....................... 2
Knoche, Scott:
Letter for the Record........................................ 106
Lafourche (LA) Parish Government:
Letter for the Record........................................ 216
Langston University:
Letter for the Record........................................ 251
Lankford, Hon. James:
Opening Statement............................................ 160
Latino Outdoors:
Letter for the Record........................................ 93
Lemoine, Justin:
Letter for the Record........................................ 215
Lepre, Carolyn R.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 133
List of organizations and individuals supporting the Chesapeake
National Recreation Area Initiative............................ 34
Louisiana Travel Association:
Letter for the Record........................................ 219
Lower Susquehanna Heritage Greenway:
Letter for the Record........................................ 95
Maryland Chamber of Commerce:
Letter for the Record........................................ 101
Maryland League of Conservation Voters:
Letter for the Record........................................ 97
Matthews, Hon. Kevin L.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 246
McLean, Bruce D.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 10
Mehrkam, Noah B.:
Statement for the Record..................................... 298
Mississippi Department of Archives and History:
Letter for the Record........................................ 229
Mobility Is Freedom Fund:
Letter for the Record........................................ 103
Moore, Hon. Blake D. et al.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 220
Moore, Hon. Wes:
Letter for the Record........................................ 82
National Aviation Heritage Alliance:
Letter for the Record........................................ 222
National Main Street Center:
Letter for the Record........................................ 249
National Parks Conservation Association:
Letter for the Record........................................ 108
Statement for the Record..................................... 280
National Park Trust:
Letter for the Record........................................ 110
Nature Forward:
Letter for the Record........................................ 112
Nichols, Hon. Monroe:
Press release entitled ``Nichols calls on President Biden to
Designate Greenwood a National Monument''.................. 247
Northam, Hon. Ralph S.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 76
Northern Neck Planning District Commission:
Letter for the Record........................................ 115
Oden, Terry L.:
Correspondence for the Record................................ 302
Olszewski, Jr., Hon. Johnny:
Letter for the Record........................................ 43
Outdoor Sport Institute:
Letter for the Record........................................ 4
Outten, Hon. Megan:
Letter for the Record........................................ 131
Padilla, Hon. Alex:
Opening Statement............................................ 31
Park Institute of America:
Letter for the Record........................................ 117
Pittman, Hon. Steuart:
Letter for the Record........................................ 40
Potomac Conservancy:
Letter for the Record........................................ 119
Potomac Riverkeeper Network:
Letter for the Record........................................ 121
Preservation Maryland:
Letter for the Record........................................ 123
Preservation Virginia:
Letter for the Record........................................ 125
Rappahannock Tribe of Virginia:
Letter for the Record........................................ 127
Recreational Equipment, Inc.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 129
Reeves, Hon. Tate:
Letter for the Record........................................ 226
Rideout, Hon. Stephen W.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 53
Salisbury Area Chamber of Commerce:
Letter for the Record........................................ 130
Scharle Outdoor Recreation, LLC:
Letter for the Record........................................ 135
Scott, Hon. Brandon M.:
Letter for the Record........................................ 44
Shenandoah National Park Trust:
Letter for the Record........................................ 140
ShoreRivers:
Letter for the Record........................................ 142
Slabinski, Britt:
Statement for the Record..................................... 304
Society for American Archaeology:
Letter for the Record........................................ 306
Somerset County (MD) Economic Development Commission:
Letter for the Record........................................ 143
Southeast Rural Community Assistance Project:
Letter for the Record........................................ 137
Stephens, Johnny:
Letter for the Record........................................ 250
Surfrider Foundation, Annapolis Chapter:
Letter for the Record........................................ 144
Surfrider Foundation, Ocean City, MD and Virginia Chapters:
Letter for the Record........................................ 146
Susquehannock Wildlife Society:
Letter for the Record........................................ 148
Thibodaux Chamber of Commerce:
Letter for the Record........................................ 218
Trust for Public Land:
Letter for the Record........................................ 151
Tulsa (OK) City Council:
Resolution No. 20236......................................... 243
Tulsa County (OK) Board of Commissioners:
Letter for the Record........................................ 242
United States Lighthouse Society:
Letter for the Record........................................ 150
Van Hollen, Hon. Chris:
Opening Statement............................................ 32
Virginia Institute of Marine Science:
Letter for the Record........................................ 153
Washington College:
Letter for the Record........................................ 154
Waterkeepers Chesapeake:
Letter for the Record........................................ 156
White, Bill:
Letter for the Record........................................ 254
Whitehall Area Communities Group:
Letter for the Record........................................ 308
(The) Wilderness Society:
Statement for the Record..................................... 310
----------
The text for each of the bills addressed in this hearing can be found
on the Committee's website at: https://www.energy.senate.gov/hearings/
2024/5/national-parks-subcommittee-hearing-to-examine-the-president-s-
budget-request-for-the-national-park-service-for-fiscal-year-2025-and-
to-receive-testimony-on-pending-legislation
THE PRESIDENT'S BUDGET REQUEST FOR THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE FOR FISCAL
YEAR 2025 AND PENDING LEGISLATION
----------
WEDNESDAY, MAY 15, 2024
U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee on National Parks,
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
Washington, DC.
The Subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:00 a.m. in
Room SD-366, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Angus S.
King, Jr., Chair of the Subcommittee, presiding.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. ANGUS S. KING, JR.,
U.S. SENATOR FROM MAINE
Senator King. Good morning. We are going to start this
morning with consideration of 23 different legislative
proposals. Afterwards, we will have a conversation about the
President's budget for Fiscal Year 2025 for the National Park
Service.
I want to begin with one of the bills that we are going to
be considering, which is S. 4209. It is legislation I have
introduced to provide greater regional access to the Katahdin
Woods and Waters National Monument. Senator Daines will
remember that we looked at this bill, similar legislation, two
years ago in the last Congress. As a result of that hearing, we
heard a lot of feedback from the community. We have been
working closely with regional stakeholders and modified the
legislation significantly based on their suggestions. The
result of this engagement is that instead of authorizing a
42,000-acre acquisition, this bill authorizes roughly 2,500
acres, and the change was made at the request of the Trust for
Public Lands (TPL), which owns the majority of the potential
addition. TPL is separately working to transfer the balance of
the adjacent land to the Penobscot Nation as a working forest.
As you can see from this map, what we are really talking
about here is a road that will connect the Town of
Millinocket--which is the principal town and community in the
region of the national monument--with the monument itself
rather than the current pathway to get to the monument, which
is a long, circuitous route up one side. So this would be an
incredible boon to the economy of that region, and that is why
I have been working so hard on this for several years.
[The map referred to follows:]
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Senator King. Also, since the introduction of the
predecessor bill several years ago, the State of Maine has
acquired an easement that is necessary for an ATV trail from
Millinocket to Medway to another town in the region ensuring
there will be no impact on that important east-west connection
for ATVs and snowmobiles. ATVs and snowmobiles--as they are in
Montana, I suspect--are a big deal in Maine and the trails are
very important. So working out something with the ATV clubs in
the region has been an important part of the work that we have
done.
I want to introduce several letters of support into the
record, including one from the Katahdin Chamber of Commerce. I
also want to highlight a letter that I got from Sandra and
Thomas Bell, who own the Golden Road Crossing, a local store on
Millinocket Lake. They have embarked upon an expansion of their
store and restaurant to be open year-round. This is a very big
deal for that part of the state, and employs 28 people from the
local area. They attribute the growth in their business to the
increased tourism in both Baxter State Park and the Katahdin
National Monument. They are supporting this legislation because
not only will access to the monument from the south help to
increase their business, it will also improve their guests'
experience. My goal remains for this legislation to help the
Katahdin region continue to grow as a vibrant outdoor
recreation hub that helps diversify the region's economy while
not impacting the region's revamped forest products sector.
[Letters of support for S. 4209 follow:]
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Senator King. In addition to the Katahdin bill that I
mentioned, we are considering legislation to rename the Acadia
Visitor Center after former Senate Majority Leader George
Mitchell, who is one of the heroes in Maine of the last
generation. We also have a proposal to name a visitor center
after former Senator Dianne Feinstein, and our colleague
Senator Carper. We are also here about a proposal to establish
Georgia's first national park, something Senator Ossoff has
spoken to me about, and a bill led by Senators Lankford and
Booker, to establish the Historic Greenwood District-Black Wall
Street National Monument in Tulsa, telling the story of a
horrific massacre that needs to be remembered as part of our
country's history.
The final bill I want to specifically mention is
legislation regarding the old RFK Stadium campus in Washington,
DC. This is a bill that has already passed the House and we
have received testimony in support from Mayor Bowser. I have no
objections to this bill, nor to the idea of using the site for
a future sports stadium. However, I recognize that my Vice
Chair has specific issues that must be addressed before this
bill can move forward, and I hope to work with him to find a
resolution.
For those in attendance today, I want to note that the
Subcommittee will keep the record open on all bills considered
here today, allowing those who wish to submit statements of
support or opposition to any of the bills to be included in the
official record.
In addition to legislation, we are also going to examine
the Park Service's budget request. As this Committee knows
well, in recent years I have grown frustrated with an
underfunding of routine maintenance by the Administrations of
both parties. I was just at a national park last week in
Antietam, Maryland, with a bipartisan group of my colleagues,
and the staff talked about their innovative use of maintenance
action teams and efforts to buy down maintenance needs and
using materials that last longer and require less periodic
maintenance over the design life. Of course, we funded a great
deal of deferred maintenance in the Great American Outdoors
Act, one of the signal achievements of the last several years
of this Congress, but we cannot keep digging the deferred
maintenance hole and expect a Great American Outdoors Act to
come along every four or five years. So I hope to work with the
Administration, the Office of Management and Budget, and the
Park Service on being sure that there is an adequate
maintenance budget for these gems across the country.
While my recent focus has been on the maintenance budget,
we also need to talk about staffing of our national parks. As
our visitation has gone up rather dramatically in the last five
years, staffing has not kept pace. If we want people to have a
positive experience at our national parks, we have to have
adequate staff. We have to have people that can deal with
visitors and the volume of visitors that we are seeing so that
they can continue to enjoy and learn from those spaces. As
frontline national park managers in the green and gray uniforms
and the famous hats that help bring history alive and keep
visitors safe, this budget impacts their lives and thus the
visitor experience. I worry that our frontline workers, our
frontline employees, are over-stretched, as head count has not
kept up with visitation. I want to acknowledge that the budget
does attempt to increase these staffing levels.
Now I would like to recognize Vice Chairman Daines for his
opening statement. Following his remarks, I will recognize
members of the Committee or other Senators who wish to make a
statement about their bills that are on the agenda, followed by
any members not on the Committee who seek to make a statement.
Then, we will turn to our witness, Mr. Caldwell, for his
opening statement.
Vice Chair Daines.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. STEVE DAINES,
U.S. SENATOR FROM MONTANA
Senator Daines. Chairman King, thank you.
Today's legislative hearing focuses on 23 largely parochial
bills, as well as the National Park Service's Fiscal Year 2025
budget. I am going to defer my normal introduction for later in
the hearing, as I would like to focus on an important issue
that is before us here today. At today's hearing we have H.R.
4984, the D.C. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus
Revitalization Act. This bill transfers the administration over
the RFK Memorial Stadium campus from the Park Service to the
District of Columbia for 99 years. The purpose of this transfer
is for the development of a new stadium, as well as other
commercial and residential development. Now, you might ask why
does a Montana Senator have a specific interest in this bill?
Well, today is about righting a wrong. Specifically, my goal is
for the Washington Commanders to honor the pride, the history,
and the heritage of the Blackfeet Tribe, who are my
constituents in Montana, for the Tribe's contributions to the
team's legacy.
Let me tell you the story. Behind me is a photograph from
the 1960s of Blackie Wetzel and Senator Robert F. Kennedy.
Blackie Wetzel was a member of the Blackfeet Nation in Montana
and served his people and the country in many roles throughout
his life, including as Chairman of the Blackfeet Tribe, and he
was President of the National Congress of American Indians. In
1971, Blackie met with George Herbert Allen, who was then the
head coach and general manager of the Washington Redskins.
Knowing that Coach Allen admired and supported Native
Americans, Blackie Wetzel encouraged him to replace the team's
``R'' logo with something that represented Indian Country.
Blackie brought Coach Allen designs based off of prominent
Native American figures, including Blackfeet Chief Two Guns
White Calf. And behind me, you will see the logo and the photo
of Chief Two Guns White Calf. The clear depiction of Chief Two
Guns White Calf is beyond dispute.
[The photos and logo referred to follow:]
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Senator Daines. On behalf of the team, Coach Allen adopted
the new iconic logo that is placed prominently on this
beautiful helmet that I received from former players. I am
proud to display it here today.
[A photo of the helmet mentioned appears below:]
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Senator Daines. Make no mistake--this logo was inspired and
envisioned by Wetzel as a tribute to Native Americans. It is
not a caricature. It is a depiction of pride, of strength, of
courage, of honor. In fact, to quote Blackie Wetzel from 2002,
he said, ``It made us all so proud to have an Indian on a big-
time team.'' And I would add that historically, as the son of a
Montana U.S. Marine, do you realize Native Americans serve our
country in uniform at the highest percentage per capita of any
ethnic group? They are truly warriors for our country.
Now that you know the history, I would like to talk about
the future. First, let me be clear. I am not calling for the
return of the former team name, which has become increasingly
controversial, especially in Indian Country, but the logo
itself remains a point of pride for many in Indian Country, and
specifically for the Wetzel family. I was able to speak last
night with Ryan Wetzel, who is the grandson of Blackie Wetzel,
who was out, in fact, in his backyard last night doing some
remodeling work on a patio just outside of Hamilton, Montana.
The failure to properly honor the pride and the history
embodied by this iconic logo must be made right by both the
team's new ownership and the NFL. Doing so would honor the
Blackfeet Tribe, my constituents in Montana. Showing proper
recognition to the contributions of Native Americans is also
fitting for our capital region, as the National Parks website
points out, ``our nation's capital is full of American Indian
heritage.'' Simply look outside at the names in the region. For
example, the Potomac River, the Quantico Marine Corps Base, and
the Chesapeake Bay Watershed that spans much of the
geographical region that makes up Washington's fan base.
What I am demanding here is very straightforward--that the
new team leadership and the NFL sit down with the Wetzel
family, sit down with the Blackfeet, sit down with tribal
leaders, and find a way to properly honor the history of the
logo and the heritage of our Tribal Nations and to rededicate
the organization as an advocate for Indian Country. That effort
might take several forms. It might result in restoring the logo
with a new team name that is supported by tribal leaders and
will bring unity across communities. It could also be telling
the story of the logo's connection to the Wetzel family and
honoring the Native communities it represents. When I spoke
with Ryan Wetzel last night, we recalled a meeting I had with
his dad, Don Wetzel, here in Washington, DC, talking about this
very issue. That was back in 2021. Don died not long
afterwards. And Ryan just smiled. You could hear his smile over
the phone. He said, ``My dad would be thrilled to think that we
are having this discussion today in Washington in honoring the
legacy of this logo.'' It could be resuming merchandise sales
featuring the logo and maybe using a portion of the proceeds to
bring awareness to missing and murdered indigenous women and
other tribal causes. For example, on the NFL website you can
buy a retro Houston Oilers jersey with the old logo, but
nowhere on the website can you find merchandise with this logo
for sale.
The new owners and the NFL have the opportunity to heal old
wounds, work with families, and enter into a new era. They can
properly honor the heritage of the Wetzel family, the Blackfeet
Tribe, and Native Americans across our country. They could
honor former players and the community as a whole. There are a
lot of former players that have signed this helmet. The team
can be a beacon of light for these communities, but until I see
meaningful actions that satisfy the Wetzel family and other
tribal stakeholders, I cannot support this legislation. With
that, Mr. Chairman, I have a number of letters, including one
from Ryan Wetzel and one from the Montana Native Women's
Coalition, a few news stories, and in fact, an excerpt from
George Allen: A Football Life by Mike Richman that I ask
unanimous consent to enter into the record.
Senator King. Without objection.
[Letters and items for the record follow:]
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Senator Daines. Mr. Chairman, thank you, and I turn it back
to you and look forward to the discussion.
Senator King. Thank you very much for that eloquent
statement, Senator Daines, and I look forward to working with
you. I understand there has already been a meeting between some
of the interested parties here and the new Washington
ownership. Is that correct?
Senator Daines. There has been a meeting.
Senator King. A meeting. Okay, good.
Well, I look forward to working with you on that. I cannot
help but reflect when Edward Bennett Williams let George Allen
go as the coach of the team, he had the immortal quote, ``I
gave him an unlimited budget and he exceeded it.'' I have often
thought of that quote.
I did want to mention that we have in attendance today,
Seth Clark, the Macon-Bibb County Mayor Pro Tempore and
Executive Director of the Ocmulgee National Park and Preserve
Initiative, which we are going to be discussing later, and
Tracie Revis, a citizen and former Chief of Staff of the
Muscogee Creek Nation, Director of Advocacy for the National
Park and Preserve Initiative. Seth and Tracie have been leading
this effort at the local level for years, and their
contributions to this legislation have been invaluable in
ensuring that both local interests and the Tribe's voice have
been represented adequately through this process, and I commend
Senator Ossoff for bringing this bill forward.
Mr. Caldwell.
Oh, we are going to do the advocates first? Oh.
I'm sorry. We will start with Senator Van Hollen. I think.
Senator Padilla.
Senator Padilla. Thank you. Coming to Committee pays
dividends.
[Laughter.]
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. ALEX PADILLA,
U.S. SENATOR FROM CALIFORNIA
Senator Padilla. Thank you, Mr. Chair, and I also want to
thank you for including three of my bills in this hearing.
Three of my bills that would impact, for the better, the
management of the California deserts, which our dear friend and
colleague, the late Senator Feinstein championed like no one
else.
While so many of California's public lands and waters have
been preserved for future generations thanks to the singular
drive and leadership of Senator Feinstein, she had a very
special place in her heart for the California desert. Senator
Feinstein is widely regarded as our greatest protector of the
California desert. She would often discuss her fond childhood
memories of the desert where she would ride horseback and
marvel at the way the light and shadows and colors of the
desert played off one another to illuminate the landscape. I
think in many ways that inspires some of her watercolors that
she was known for during her time here in the Senate. She
especially loved the desert tortoise, and she proudly showed
off a poster in her office of a majestic tortoise on the very
land that she had worked hard to protect. There is one tortoise
that she dubbed the ``405.'' She nicknamed the tortoise after
the famously slow-moving freeway in Los Angeles. If you ever
brought up the desert in a meeting with Senator Feinstein, she
much more often than not summoned her staff to ``Bring me the
poster of 405!'' That is how committed she was.
Now, in that light, I am proud that one of the bills on the
agenda today would rename the Cottonwood Visitor Center at
Joshua Tree National Park as the Senator Dianne Feinstein
Visitor Center. As the Park Service notes in their testimony,
Senator Feinstein authored the California Desert Protection Act
that created the Mojave National Preserve. It also expanded and
redesignated Death Valley and Joshua Tree National Monuments as
national parks and designated over seven million acres of
California desert as wilderness. So on the 25th anniversary of
the passage of Senator Feinstein's signature California Desert
Protection Act, Senator Feinstein wrote that ``the California
Desert is a true American treasure.'' So what better way to
honor her legacy than by forever ensuring that visitors to
Joshua Tree National Park are reminded or are taught about
Senator Feinstein's enduring public lands legacy. The Park
Service even notes in their testimony that they plan to
construct a new visitor center at Cottonwood and recommends
that the Committee be clear in its actions that we ensure any
successor visitor center at that location also be named for
Senator Feinstein.
Mr. Chair, I also have two other California desert bills on
the agenda today to continue Senator Feinstein's efforts to
protect the California desert. These bills would expand the
boundaries of the Mojave National Preserve and Joshua Tree
National Park. I thank the Park Service for their supportive
testimony in these non-controversial bills as well. Thank you.
Senator King. Senator Van Hollen.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN,
U.S. SENATOR FROM MARYLAND
Senator Van Hollen. Thank you.
Senator King. Welcome to the Committee.
Senator Van Hollen. Thank you, Chairman King. It is great
to be here. I was glad to learn that you and a bipartisan group
of Senators were able to visit Antietam Battlefield in the
great State of Maryland. I had planned to join you, but we had
a family graduation. I look forward to catching up with you.
And I want to thank you, Ranking Member Daines, and members of
the Committee for the opportunity to speak to you on the
Chesapeake National Recreation Area Act, a bill that I
introduced with Senators Cardin, Warner, and Kaine and that has
been introduced in the House of Representatives on a bipartisan
basis by Congressman John Sarbanes of Maryland and Congressman
Wittman of Virginia.
As I think everyone here knows, Senator Daines' reference
to the Bay in his comments--the Chesapeake Bay is a natural
treasure that sits at the heart of my home State of Maryland
and is a watershed that includes six other states, up to New
York, as well as the District of Columbia. While there is a
National Parks office that works to improve access to the Bay,
there is no dedicated Chesapeake Bay unit of the National Park
Service--a surprising gap in our National Park System. The idea
for a Chesapeake National Recreation Area was born four decades
ago, motivated by the desire to formally recognize the
Chesapeake Bay as the national treasure that it is and to
provide all Americans with more of an opportunity to experience
it. If enacted, the Chesapeake National Recreation Area Act
would allow the National Park Service to, through voluntary
agreements, partner with states, localities, and private
entities to increase public access to the Chesapeake Bay. A
Chesapeake National Recreation Area would allow visitors to
experience the Bay firsthand and learn about the incredible
resources and restoration effort and strengthen the culture of
stewardship across the region. It will also provide visitors
with an opportunity to learn about the rich history of the
region and those who have lived and worked on the Bay. A
national recreation area for the Chesapeake Bay would also
create jobs and accelerate economic growth in the region. That
designation will attract visitors to the Bay, boosting outdoor
recreation and our tourism economy, including our boating
economy.
Importantly, the establishment of a Chesapeake National
Recreation Area will not--and I want to stress this--impact
water or fishing rights, supersede state authority, impose any
additional regulations on recreational or business activities
in the Chesapeake Bay waters, or require any sale of real
estate. This bipartisan initiative has been driven by local
leaders since the beginning, and it was developed through an
exhaustive public outreach and meaningful collaboration process
with a broad range of stakeholders. I started working on this
with Congressman Sarbanes and local advocates in 2018--
conducting informal outreach, developing legislative language,
and soliciting technical advice from the National Park Service.
We formed our working group in 2021, composed of a
bicameral group of lawmakers, state government representatives,
and more than 30 regional organizations. In June 2022, the
working group released ten guiding principles outlining a
framework for what the Chesapeake National Recreation Area
would be. Later that year, we released a discussion draft based
on the working group's guiding principles, held many
information sessions with interested stakeholders, and had a
six-month-long public comment period. We compiled over 1,300
comments and integrated feedback into the bill. We finally
introduced it in July of last year with strong support. The
bill has garnered over 100 endorsements from local elected
officials, environmental and historical preservation
organizations, seafood and outdoor recreation businesses, and
many more.
Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to submit the 74
letters of support from groups throughout the Chesapeake
Watershed.
Senator King. Without objection.
[Letters of support for S. 2620 follow:]
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Senator Van Hollen. I want to thank the many organizations
and individuals who contributed their time and energy to
turning an idea into a bill--the bill that is before the
Subcommittee today.
I know some of you are here in the room, and I thank you
for your unwavering support. Mr. Chairman and Ranking Member
Daines, I also want to thank the National Park Service and the
agency's partnership in developing this initiative and for the
invaluable technical assistance provided by Wendy O'Sullivan
from the NPS Chesapeake Bay Office. Our working group, the 74
groups who wrote letters of support for this initiative, and
the many others who have supported this project have made it
what it is today. They have refined and improved it from the
initial concept.
Chairman King, Ranking Member Daines, members of the
Committee, thank you for the time to testify here today, and I
urge your support for this legislation. Thank you.
Senator King. Thank you, Senator Van Hollen.
The process you described to develop this legislation
sounds like a model of local input, and I appreciate the work
that has gone into getting us to the bill that we have before
us today. Thank you for that work.
Senator Van Hollen. Thank you. Thank you for recognizing
that it was an exhaustive process of public input. Thank you.
Senator King. Senator Lankford.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. JAMES LANKFORD,
U.S. SENATOR FROM OKLAHOMA
Senator Lankford. Chairman King, thank you. Ranking Member
Daines, I appreciate the time to get a chance to be in front of
you today to be able to speak in support of Senate bill 3543.
It is a bill to establish the Historic Greenwood District-Black
Wall Street National Monument in the State of Oklahoma.
I would like to ask unanimous consent to submit a letter of
support from the Historic Greenwood District-Black Wall Street
National Monument Coalition into the record.
Senator King. Without objection.
Senator Lankford. Thank you.
[Letter of support for S. 3543 follows:]
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Senator Lankford. I do appreciate that some of the leaders
that were a part of pulling this letter together and all the
work that goes into it are here in the room today as well to be
able to be here in support of what is actually happening.
At the end of last year, Senator Booker and I introduced a
bill to designate the Historic Greenwood District of North
Tulsa, Oklahoma, where the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre took place.
We wanted to designate that as a national monument. Each year,
including in just a very few weeks, on May 31 and June 1,
Oklahoma and the nation pause to reflect on the 1921 race
massacre that left that community in absolute ruins. Although
Greenwood and North Tulsa lost almost everything on those
terrible summer days 100 years ago, the community remains
relentlessly devoted to turning tragedy into triumph. They
remain a beacon for a culture of opportunity and prosperity and
they are absolutely committed to the future. While the
community is committed to the future, we should, as a nation,
also remember our past and learn from it. North Tulsa remains a
place of light and hope in the community that show their
strength to overcome adversity and work toward reconciliation,
which is something our nation should also do and never forget.
I am grateful for the tireless efforts of so many in North
Tulsa and in our state to make sure our children today and the
generations yet unborn remember those lost, and they understand
the stain of racism and learn the powerful story of resilience
and rebuilding.
It was a great honor to be able to say to people that we
have not forgotten about what happened. We have not ignored it.
We have not swept it under the rug and pretended that it never
happened. In this generation, we remember. We must also work to
ensure the story and the history live on and are never
forgotten. That is why this bill is so important. It is
critical to note that in addition to the hundreds of Black Wall
Street residents that were killed, the Greenwood neighborhood
was burned to the ground and that almost no substantial
structure survived that tragic event just over 100 years ago.
This bill delineates the historic boundary of the Greenwood
neighborhood as a national monument.
The bill establishes in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a national
monument unit of the National Park Service to preserve,
protect, and interpret for the benefit of present and future
generations resources associated with the historic Greenwood
District, Black Wall Street, and the Tulsa Race Massacre of
1921 and the role of each in the history in the State of
Oklahoma and of the United States. This designation will serve
as a catalyst for the resurgence of this economy and cultural
hub of Tulsa while helping the country understand and learn
from our shared history.
With all new things, of course, there are questions. With
an area that has already faced so much hardship, it is easy to
understand why. This bill ensures that the Secretary can only
acquire land or interest in land through donation, exchange, or
purchase from a willing seller. We also wrote-in explicit
private property protections so there is no change of zoning--
no federal control of private land at all. Additionally, the
Commission established under the bill will make recommendations
to the Secretary for the location of any signage or potential
visitor center. The bill includes a narrow waiver of one
provision of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, which governs
the establishment and operation of advisory committees.
Through the legislation, we crafted language that both
honors Greenwood's past and protects its future. It is my hope
that we can work to ensure that our children do not grow up in
a nation that forgets their past but also makes sure it is not
repeated again, and to make sure all individuals are recognized
and respected and every person has the same opportunity. I have
worked with my friends in North Tulsa for years to secure
designations on the National Registry of Historic Places and on
the Civil Rights Trail. Now we are one step closer to
establishing a national monument, not just to the tragedy that
was May 31 and June 1 of 1921, but to recognize a thriving
community that was there for years and that worked hard to be
able to come back and has shown their resilience. The Historic
Greenwood-Black Wall Street area in North Tulsa deserves its
place among our nation's most significant historic locations.
I look forward to the testimony and I urge support for the
bill. Thank you for taking this up.
Senator King. Senator Lankford, thank you very much for
bringing this bill forward and thanks to all those who worked
to make it a reality.
Several years ago, I was traveling back home from Eastern
Europe and stopped at the Frankfurt Airport, and we had a guide
in the airport who was a German citizen who took us around
through the airport and got us to the right gate. In
conversation with him, he noted that when he was in high
school, it was required for every student to visit a
concentration camp, for the very reasons that you stated today:
sweeping history under the rug is never good. Remembering is
always good. And I was very struck by that. In the nation of
Germany, which went through that horrendous period, there was
no effort to sweep the history under the rug, but indeed, there
was an effort to remind its citizens of what can happen and
what did happen so that it may never happen again. So thank you
again for bringing this bill forward.
We are going to reconfigure the table now for Mr. Caldwell
to join us.
Mr. Caldwell, welcome. We are delighted to have you with
us. You are a familiar witness to this Committee. Proceed with
your testimony.
STATEMENT OF MICHAEL A. CALDWELL, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, PARK
PLANNING, FACILITIES, AND LANDS, NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, U.S.
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR; ACCOMPANIED BY KYM HALL, REGIONAL
DIRECTOR, NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
Mr. Caldwell. Thank you.
Chairman King, Ranking Member Daines, and members of the
Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to present the
Department of the Interior's views on the 24 bills on today's
agenda. I am accompanied by Kym Hall, Regional Director for the
National Capital Region of the National Park Service. Regional
Director Hall is here to help answer any questions you may have
about H.R. 4984, which would transfer administrative
jurisdiction over the RFK Memorial Stadium campus from the
National Park Service to the District of Columbia.
Because this hearing is also covering the President's
Fiscal Year 2025 budget request for the National Park Service,
I am available to answer any questions on that topic as well as
on the individual bills on the agenda.
I would like to submit our full statements on these bills
for the record and summarize the Department's views.
The Department supports the following bills:
S. 2620, which would establish the Chesapeake National
Recreation Area as a new unit of the National Park System.
S. 2742, which would designate the Finger Lakes National
Heritage Area as a component of the National Heritage Area
system.
S. 2784, which would adjust the boundary of the Dayton
Aviation Heritage National Historical Park.
S. 3195, which would designate the General George C.
Marshall House as an affiliated area of the National Park
System.
S. 3534, which would authorize the Pines Foundation to
establish a memorial to AIDS victims at Fire Island National
Seashore.
S. 3543, which would establish the Historic Greenwood
District-Black Wall Street National Monument, a new unit of the
National Park System commemorating the 1921 Tulsa Massacre.
S. 4209, which would provide greater regional access to the
Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument by authorizing
additional lands, and which includes several other critical new
authorities for the monument.
S. 4222, which would adjust the boundary of Mojave National
Preserve to include Castle Mountains National Monument.
S. 4227, which would expand the boundary of Joshua Tree
National Park.
S. 4259, which would authorize a study of Lahaina for its
feasibility and suitability as a National Heritage Area.
H.R. 359, which would establish Fort San Geronimo del
Boquern as an affiliated area of the National Park System.
And H.R. 4984, which would transfer administrative
jurisdiction over the RFK Memorial Stadium campus to the
District of Columbia for purposes including residential and
commercial development.
The reasons for our support of these bills are explained in
our full statements. For most of the bills I just listed, we
are recommending amendments, and we would be happy to work with
the bill sponsors and the Committee on drafting them.
Regarding the remaining bills:
The Department supports the intent of S. 4216, to bring
additional recognition, protection, and interpretation to the
resources associated with the Ocmulgee Mounds and the Ocmulgee
River corridor. The bill seeks to do that by establishing the
Ocmulgee Mounds National Park and Preserve. This unit would be
composed of a redesignated Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical
Park and a new Ocmulgee Mounds National Preserve, which would
include within it the Bond Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. We
recommend amendments that we believe will improve the bill's
implementation.
The Department supports the goal of S. 3251, to improve
accessibility at the Lincoln Home National Historic Site.
However, we have concerns with the bill's specific
accessibility requirements. We recommend amendments to require
an approach that is consistent with the current National Park
Service accessibility plans for the site and to exclude the
bill's proposed boundary expansion.
The Department supports the goals of S. 3568 and H.R. 3448
to expand access to the American Battlefield Protection
Program. However, we have concerns with the provisions relating
to ensuring the continued stewardship of lands that receive
federal funding and recommend amending the bill to address
those concerns.
The Department appreciates the intent of S. 4129, to assist
the establishment of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential
Library, but has concerns about it. This bill would direct the
Secretary of the Interior to provide a matching grant to the
foundation planning to build the library and to enter into
agreements to loan, transfer, or convey museum artifacts from
Federal agencies to the foundation. We would welcome the
opportunity to address those concerns.
Regarding S. 3241, we appreciate the sponsor's interest in
designating the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians and
historic Jefferson College as affiliated areas of Natchez
National Historical Park. The National Park Service is
conducting reconnaissance surveys on these two areas that we
believe will provide valuable information to the Committee. If
the Committee decides to act on this bill before the surveys
are completed, we would recommend amendments.
The Department defers to Congress and does not object to
three bills that would designate visitor centers at national
park units for current or past members of the Senate. The bills
are S. 3474, which would designate the George J. Mitchell
Visitor Center at Acadia National Park; S. 4218, which would
designate the Thomas R. Carper Visitor Center at First State
National Historical Park; and S. 4228, which would designate
the Senator Dianne Feinstein Visitor Center at Joshua Tree
National Park. All three Senators have legislative
accomplishments that enhance the parks where they would be
honored. The National Park Service generally discourages
commemorative naming of park features for an individual, except
when there is a compelling justification and at least five
years have elapsed since the death of the person. However, we
recognize that Congress may specifically authorize such
recognition.
The Department does not support, in its current form, H.R.
2717, which would require a commemorative work in honor of
Medal of Honor recipients to be established in the area
designated as the Reserve under the Commemorative Works Act,
which covers the National Mall. We strongly support locating
this monument in a place of honor and prominence, but not in
the Reserve. The Department has worked to protect the Reserve
by discouraging the establishment of any new commemorative
works within it.
Finally, the Department recommends that the Committee defer
action on two bills. One is S. 2742, which would establish the
Fort Ontario National Monument as a unit of the National Park
System. We are currently conducting a special resource study of
the area to determine whether this site would meet the National
Park Service's criteria for designation as a new unit. We
recommend waiting to act on this bill until the study is
completed.
The other is S. 3542, which would expand the boundary of
Atchafalaya National Heritage Area to include Lafourche Parish.
We recommend waiting to act on this bill until an amendment to
the original study for this National Heritage Area is prepared,
which will enable the National Park Service to make a
determination about whether the proposed addition is
appropriate.
In closing, we commend the thoughtful work of all the
members who have developed the bills now before you, several of
which have been years in the making. We look forward to working
with the bill sponsors and the Committee on amendments to
address the concerns we have outlined in our full statements.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my statement. I would be pleased
to answer any questions you may have on these bills or on the
President's Fiscal Year 2025 budget request for the National
Park Service, and Regional Director Hall would be happy to
answer any questions on H.R. 4984. Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Caldwell follows:]
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Senator King. Thank you, Mr. Caldwell.
Before we begin our questions, I want to thank you, and by
extension, all the people that work for the National Park
Service for the extraordinary service that they provide to our
country. To all the visitors that come, it is so meaningful and
so important. And to those of us who have visited a variety of
national parks, the people make those special places even more
special. So please convey the thanks of the Committee to all of
the staff of the National Park Service for the wonderful work
that they do.
You testified that you support the legislation I mentioned
at the beginning that would improve access to the Katahdin
Woods and Waters National Monument. If it is passed, the Park
Service could then negotiate either to purchase the fee of the
road or a right-of-way. Given your experience, how long do
these kinds of negotiations usually take?
Mr. Caldwell. Well, I think each situation is different,
but knowing the players that are involved up at this particular
unit, I would guess those discussions have already begun, as
this legislation was introduced. I don't want to give it a
timeline, but certainly, with Katahdin Woods in particular, I
think, given the proposed legislation and the access that you
spoke to earlier, we realize it is a priority and I know the
park staff, the regional staff, and the lands office staff in
the Washington Office will take it as a priority.
Senator King. Well, one of the issues that we want to pay
special attention to in this is that this is a logging area.
Mr. Caldwell. Yes.
Senator King. And it will remain so, and we want to be sure
that the access is safe. And I hope that you can continue to
work with the commercial logging community to ensure that there
will not be an impedance of their work, but also that visitors
can access the monument safely. Can you describe how that
process works?
Mr. Caldwell. Sure, yes. Yes, sir.
We take visitor safety very seriously at all units, and
certainly the park works to ensure that visitors are aware of
the logging trucks and have the right-of-way on the roads and
are aware of the monument. We make sure visitors are aware of
this through website work, through brochures, as well as the
visitor contacts, the personal contacts that we have in the
unit up there.
Senator King. And that is something that you've been able
to do successfully in other parts of the country, I take it?
Mr. Caldwell. Yes, sir.
Senator King. Thank you.
Finally, on this bill there is a provision that allows the
Park Service to acquire up to ten acres for operations and
maintenance. Would this provide sufficient flexibility for you
to adequately be able to operate the monument?
Mr. Caldwell. Yes, certainly in that particular unit where
we are there to protect the resources--preserve those
resources--having the ability to be able to set up
administrative facilities on lands outside that particular
boundary will be much more conducive to us, to set up that
operation and give us an opportunity to make sure those
resources we are there to protect stay that way, but also be
able to--whether it is tie-in with local utilities and things
like that, it is a wise way to go.
Senator King. And I want to be clear that what this bill
does is provide access. It is essentially a road, either
ownership of the road or a right-of-way, not significant
additional land added to the size of the national park. We are
talking about an access, not additions to the acreage of the--
I'm sorry--of the monument.
Mr. Caldwell. Correct. That is correct. This is about
access to the national monument.
Senator King. Mr. Caldwell, to change the subject, S. 4216
redesignates a historical park as a national park. In looking
through the history of what it is you administer, I find 25
different designations for types of units--gardens, preserves,
forest parks, mountain parks, three types of battlefields,
three historic designations. Is the management of these various
assets different according to the title under which it falls?
In other words, is a national historic park managed differently
than a----
Mr. Caldwell. Sure, any superintendent, and I speak as a
former one, will tell you how they manage starts with the
enabling legislation. So whatever the nomenclature of that park
is, it is tied into the National Park System where the Organic
Act and management policies in that particular enabling
legislation will dictate what you do with things like the
superintendent compendium and the allowance of different types
of uses.
Senator King. Should we consider talking with you, having a
roundtable of some kind to talk about how to perhaps
rationalize this process so the public isn't confused as to
what's what?
Mr. Caldwell. I am not sure where you want me to go with
that question, but yes.
[Laughter.]
Mr. Caldwell. I do believe during the centennial there was
a discussion, actually, I think it was part of our national
systems plan that we transmitted over to this Committee about a
year or so ago, there was this discussion about nomenclature,
and I think it is a topic that is certainly worthy of further
looking at.
Senator King. I think it's worth our Committee's
consideration, just again, to be sure the public----
Mr. Calwell. Yes, sir.
Senator King [continuing]. Has some understanding of what
these different names and designations mean.
Mr. Caldwell. Yes, sir.
Senator King. Senator Daines.
Senator Daines. Chairman King, thank you.
I have got a couple questions for Mr. Caldwell. Before, I
just want to give a brief introduction and overview of some of
these bills. There are a lot of important bills that they just
went through there, Mr. Caldwell.
Senate bill 3568, the American Battlefield Protection
Program Enhancement Act, would improve the protection of
American's historic battlefields. I am proud to co-sponsor this
bill with Senator Hyde-Smith. I look forward to seeing it
signed into law.
Senate bill 4129, the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential
Library Act, would allow the establishment of the Theodore
Roosevelt Library in Medora, North Dakota, with Theodore
Roosevelt National Park in Medora, North Dakota, just 30
minutes from Wibaux, Montana. I am excited to hear more about
this proposal.
Finally, H.R. 2717, the National Medal of Honor Monument
Location Act, would allow the placement of the monument devoted
to Medal of Honor recipients on the National Mall. Medal of
Honor recipients, through their service and sacrifice, are the
highest example of American exceptionalism, and it is important
they are honored properly. I know that placing new monuments in
the Reserve has been controversial in the past, so I am looking
forward to hearing more from the Park Service about their
concerns.
Finally, my office has received a number of support letters
for various bills on today's agenda. Mr. Chairman, I would ask
unanimous consent they be included in today's record.
Senator King. Without objection.
[The letters referred to follow:]
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Senator Daines. Now, a couple of questions, Mr. Caldwell.
Montana is home to a number of battlefields administered by
the Park Service, including the Big Hole Battlefield in Wisdom,
Montana, the Little Bighorn Battlefield near Hardin, and the
Bear Paw Battlefield near Chinook. Senate bill 3568 expands
coordination of the battlefield programs to include tribes. How
do we ensure that tribal voices are heard at the Park Service,
especially when it comes to these battlefields that have deep
and sometimes painful histories with our tribes?
Mr. Caldwell. Sure, thank you, Senator.
Grants awarded by the NPS American Battlefield Protection
Program are helping to tell those stories of indigenous
people's experience, what they experienced, how they
experienced American history through these conflicts.
Specifically, one of the grants, the Preservation Planning
Grant, tribes are eligible for those grants to help plan, do
interpretation programs and things like that for tribes. Tribes
are eligible for those grants. Eligible projects focus on
battlefields or associated sites in the United States. And then
lastly, you mentioned, beyond the grant program, several units
of the National Park Service, and certainly, I know that we do
a lot of collaboration with tribes on the interpretive story of
those different units. As a former superintendent of a
Revolutionary War battlefield, we certainly worked with the
Oneida Indian Nation to tell the story of the Mohawk Valley in
New York State. And so I think it's part of the core of our
interpretive program. No matter the story, it needs to be told,
as both of you indicated earlier, as well as Senator Lankford.
Senator Daines. Mr. Caldwell, today's hearing also examines
the Park Service budget. Our National Parks are one of a few
things that bring us all together on this Committee, but I am
concerned that we are seeing a shortfall when it comes to
prioritizing our National Parks over other more political and
divisive issues that the Department of the Interior is
currently pushing. How does the Park Service's budget support
increasing the number of full-time employees in our parks?
Mr. Caldwell. The President's Fiscal Year 2025 budget
proposes to fund 19,953 full-time equivalent employees (FTE)
across all funding streams. In Fiscal Year 2023, actually FTE
usage totaled about 18,900. It is important to note that the
Fiscal Year 2023 FTE level is approximately 15 percent below
the FTE level in Fiscal Year 2010, despite having many new
units added to the system--over 30 units since 2010.
Additionally, the Fiscal Year 2024 enacted appropriation did
not fund fixed costs, requiring parks to absorb over $100
million of those costs in their existing budgets. It made
additional funding reductions that led to the loss of
purchasing power, and therefore FTE in our operations account.
This Fiscal Year 2025 budget proposes to restore those
reductions.
Senator Daines. You know, one example, talking about FTEs
and employees, is the importance of supporting employee
housing. An example, you have Yellowstone National Park, where
I grew up nearby. Superintendent Cam Sholly is doing great work
to increase housing for employees, but he cannot do that alone.
How does the budget help expand housing for Park Service
employees in gateway communities? It's not just about
attracting the best to serve the National Park Service, but
also to retain them. I think housing is an important part of
that.
Mr. Caldwell. Yes, sir. Certainly, you brought up a great
example in what Superintendent Sholly is doing at Yellowstone.
The Fiscal Year 2025 request proposes more than $100 million
for housing across multiple appropriations--that includes an
increase of $9 million for the Housing Improvement Program,
which supports new construction and rehabilitation; more than
$60 million in Great American Outdoors Act deferred maintenance
housing projects; $2 million to support leased housing in local
communities where the park will go into a community and lease
apartments or whatever it is, for their seasonal employees, in
particular; as well as other projects across the funding
stream.
Senator Daines. You mentioned about the maintenance there,
and I know the Chairman here and myself believe that fixing the
maintenance backlog is a bipartisan issue. We both strongly
support it. But I fear that instead of the number being
reduced, we are actually seeing it grow. I don't think we can
depend on Congress passing another, you know, Great American
Outdoors Act every 50 years to deal with the backlog. We have
got to get ahead of it here in our budgets. How does the budget
support cyclic maintenance so that assets don't continue to
pile up from the deferred maintenance list?
Mr. Caldwell. The Fiscal Year 2025 budget proposes a $5
million increase for cyclic maintenance projects for a total of
$193.2 million. Whether it is Acadia or Yellowstone, cyclic
maintenance is really a central element of the NPS effort to
curtail deferred maintenance.
Senator Daines. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator King. $5 million is not very much of an increase,
and I spoke to the Director of the Office of Management and
Budget about this as well as the Department of the Interior.
This is something we really have to attend to. We just can't
continue to defer maintenance and hope that there will be
another Great American Outdoors Act. That's going to be a hard
sell for the Vice Chair and I when we tell our colleagues we
need more money for deferred maintenance when you are still
deferring maintenance. So I hope that in the future budgets we
will have a stronger emphasis on ongoing maintenance.
For the record, I would appreciate it if you would give us
an analysis of the staffing levels across the National Parks in
2010 and then what we have today, graphed against visitor
growth, and number of units growth, because my sense is that we
are just not keeping pace, and I understand the Fiscal
Responsibility Act and the constraints that we are all
operating under, but this is such an important issue that I
think it's worthy of some study. So I hope you can do that for
us for the record.
The Park Service, I think, received as I recall $500
million under the IRA for additional staffing. Has that been
spent? How is that being allocated, and how long with that
last?
Mr. Caldwell. The National Park Service received $500
million in IRA funding to hire employees in units of the
National Park System and National Historic and Scenic Trails.
We have identified approximately 1,500 positions across parks
and trails, and we are in the midst of hiring for those
positions right now. The funds are available through Fiscal
Year 2030, and the parks have planned their hiring to be
available across the full time period, and funds will be
exhausted in 2030 of those IRA funds.
Senator King. Talk to me about fee revenues, particularly
with regard to foreign visitors. I could see a differentiation
in fees based upon Americans who are paying taxes to support
the parks and those who are visiting the parks who are not
subject to that additional support for the parks. Is that
something that we could explore? Is there additional revenue
possible in the fee structure?
Mr. Caldwell. Yes, I think the fee revenue and the
Recreational Fee Act is something that I think our staff would
welcome an opportunity to discuss with the Committee and your
staff.
Senator King. Thank you.
I see that Senator Hyde-Smith has joined us. I want to
welcome her to the hearing. And Senator Hyde-Smith, the floor
is yours.
Senator Hyde-Smith. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Ranking
Member Daines. I have three hearings going on right now, and I
am trying to get questions in on all of them at the same time,
but thank you for being here today as well, and I see some
Mississippians back there. We certainly appreciate your
presence.
This bill is extremely important because of the rich
history of Natchez, Mississippi, which is one of the premier
historical tourism destinations in my state. It is only about
45 minutes from my home and it sure is a shining star for us.
Looking first at the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians, a
national landmark, this location interprets the story of the
Natchez people, who originally lived there, and the Grand
Village was the last ceremonial mound center of the Natchez
people and their homeland. It was also the site of the 1730
battle between the Natchez and the French that ultimately led
to the expulsion of the Natchez people from Mississippi.
Historical Jefferson College is another location in Natchez
that is steeped deep in history. It was Mississippi's
birthplace--the intellectual center of the old Natchez
District, and served as a Freedmen's Bureau site after the
Civil War. Jefferson College is nationally significant also as
the most intact and most complete surviving college complex
from the early American period of 1785 to 1840, notable for the
architectural integrity of this building and for the overall
integrity of the early college landscape.
I introduced this bill to support these two historic sites
by amplifying their stories, not only to Mississippians, but to
all Americans and visitors from around the world who are drawn
to Natchez. I understand and respect that the National Park
Service has a process for determining affiliated area status
for historical locations and that that process is currently
underway. I don't want to impede or hinder that process in any
way. I want to show my support for this endeavor and stand
ready to help however I can.
Before I get to my questions, I want to mention letters of
support for this endeavor from the Mississippi Governor Tate
Reeves, Natchez Mayor Dan Gibson, who is doing an awesome job,
and the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, which
is the state agency tasked with preserving and protecting the
historical resources of Mississippi.
Mr. Chairman, I would like to enter these into the record
as well.
[Letters of support follow:]
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Senator Hyde-Smith. But the question--Mr. Caldwell, I first
want to thank you and your team at NPS for responding to my
request for surveys of these two sites in Natchez and for
working diligently to come to a determination--hopefully by the
summer of this year. Can you please provide specifics of what
sort of analysis is needed at this point in the study to reach
a final determination?
Mr. Caldwell. Yes, thank you for the question.
We are, in both sites that you mentioned, we are fully
underway with our reconnaissance survey and have gotten to a
point where we are now reviewing them internally within the
National Park System within the Department of the Interior. And
I think we would look forward to a chance to brief you and your
staff on the status of where that is over the course of the
summer. We look forward to completing that study and getting it
back to you in an efficient time.
Senator Hyde-Smith. Thank you very much.
And will you commit to me that the NPS will work with me
and my staff on these locations, because they have deep but
undeveloped ties to existing NPS sites already within Natchez,
and I certainly appreciate your willingness to provide
recommended language and additional information--anything that
we need to add to that, and just the commitment there?
Mr. Caldwell. Yes, we are happy to work with you and your
staff on that.
Senator Hyde-Smith. Thank you so very much, Mr. Chairman.
Senator King. Thank you.
I understand Senator Padilla is on his way back. A couple
of additional questions. Assuming no increase in
responsibilities, which is not accurate, but assuming that, how
much additional funding would the Park Service need to maintain
the same staffing and service levels as in 2023? If you need to
take that for the record, that would be fine, but if you have
an answer----
Mr. Caldwell. There are always new responsibilities, as you
can imagine, and earlier we discussed the overall budget
request for Fiscal Year 2025, and I think we will, in terms of
the specific numbers to hold a steady state and things like
that, that's something I would like to work on with our budget
team to follow up with you on specifically.
Senator King. Thank you.
Talk to me about housing. Well, let me back up.
Mr. Caldwell. Sure.
Senator King. How are you doing on recruiting? Every
business I talk to in the country is having workforce problems.
Mr. Caldwell. Yes.
Senator King. Are you having similar problems or have you
been able to attract the people that you need?
Mr. Caldwell. I think similar to the businesses across the
country, like you said, recruiting is always a challenge for
us, particularly in areas where we may not have the housing to
offer to bring folks out to different communities. We have a
recruitment office in the National Park Service now, so we are
more strategic as an agency to recruiting different candidates
to come into the National Park Service, but housing is
certainly one key element of that recruiting that has to be
done. And so, in places like Acadia, we have just an incredible
friends group who is partnering with the National Park Service
to ensure that we can increase our capacity for dorm rooms--
they actually purchased a bed and breakfast and can provide
housing. We have a number of those examples across the park
system in other parts of the country where partners are
stepping up to work in collaboration with the National Park
Service to help bring in more capacity so that can be an
important component of recruiting.
Senator King. So the Park Service is recognizing housing is
now a part of recruitment?
Mr. Caldwell. Every superintendent I talk to about housing
reminds me that housing is an important part of their
recruitment.
Senator King. Now, how are we doing on visitation? Can
you--we don't have a graph, but is it an upward trend, and how
did we make it through the--how was visitation during the
pandemic?
Mr. Caldwell. Well, certainly we have a number of places
across the country that have seen a dramatic increase in
visitation, not everywhere, but certainly places like
Yellowstone, where the infrastructure largely--at that park,
where visitation has skyrocketed--was built in the 80s or even
earlier. That is why it has been so vital to have the Great
American Outdoors Act making these generational investments,
not just the Band-Aid approach, but a generational investment
where our children's children will have the same access to
these sites, these parks, these places that we enjoy with our
families. So visitation, certainly across many parts of the
system, continues on an upward trajectory.
Senator King. Thank you.
Senator Padilla, welcome back.
Senator Padilla. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
First of all, I wanted to acknowledge that Senator Daines
brought up one of the issue areas that I was going to chime in
on relative to housing, and even as it relates to staffing
issues at several of our parks and its impact on maintenance
and the user experience, if you will. So I want to associate
myself with that line of questions and hope to be part of the
discussions to invest and make additional improvements there as
well.
But given the extra time then, I can turn to other issues.
One that is garnering a lot of excitement in Northern
California, the O Rew project at Redwoods National and State
Parks, is a potential landmark arrangement between the Yurok
Tribe, the National Park Service, California State Parks, and
Save the Redwoods League. So I very much support the Park
Service moving forward and formalizing a co-management paradigm
that captures the values of the tribe and Redwoods National and
State Parks.
A question for Mr. Caldwell--does the Park Service need
funding or any statutory changes to bring this arrangement and
other tribal co-stewardship agreements to fruition?
Mr. Caldwell. We can certainly get back to you specifically
on the funding question with that, but the co-stewardship
priority has been made very clear by both the Secretary and
Director. We appreciate your support on that and we look
forward to seeing that continue.
Senator Padilla. And I have to imagine it's a model that we
are considering----
Mr. Caldwell. Sure.
Senator Padilla [continuing]. And implementing in areas
well beyond California, but I am proud to tout California as a
leader in this particular space.
Now, Mr. Caldwell, one of my priority programs in the
National Park Service budget is the Outdoor Recreation Legacy
Partnership. Our offices have been in touch on that, which
funds park projects in urban and low-income communities. This
program is critical for closing what many refer to as the
``nature gap,'' right? The discrepancy in access to outdoor
spaces and experiences for different communities. That is why I
have introduced the bipartisan Outdoors for All Act, a bill to
codify and improve this program. Can you reiterate why driving
funds to this program is so important and how the program
benefits communities around the country that don't have
comparable access to parks?
Mr. Caldwell. Sure. Well, I think it is a very important
program of the National Park Service. Those types of external
programs that put resources into communities that may not be
close to a national park or may need areas, parks, or different
facilities to enjoy recreation. So that will continue,
certainly, to remain a priority in Fiscal Year 2025.
Senator Padilla. Thank you for that. And I know just
providing that access, whether it's proximity to a park, is
just half the battle. In many of the more popular parks and
facilities, oftentimes it's not just, well, it's not that far,
I know how to get there, but have to make a reservation.
Mr. Caldwell. Yes.
Senator Padilla. And so we deal with the reservation
systems, and I want to ask a question about reservation systems
through the lens of equity. Initial data looking at
reservations in the National Park System suggested this nature
gap is also visible in reservation systems. Users of the
reservation systems tend to be wealthier, more highly educated,
and the communities of color are not as significant users as
other counterparts. What best practices is the National Park
Service considering in designing equitable reservation systems,
and what resources do you need from Congress to make these
improvements?
Mr. Caldwell. Sure. Yes, I think we could get back to you
and your staff and the Committee staff on what our business
services operation, who runs our reservation system, what they
are looking at to ensure equitable access to those reservation
systems.
Senator Padilla. Okay, I just want to make sure that as we
are trying to improve the experience that we are not losing
sight of equity. Again, equity in physical access, but the
reservation system being so key, particularly to the more
popular parks, that it is functioning the way that we envision
and consistent with our nation's ``small d'' democratic values.
Thank you for your service. Thank you for being here today.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Senator King. The distinguished Senator from Georgia.
Senator Ossoff. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and Ranking Member
Daines, pleasure to join you, and thank you for accommodating
me. I am grateful to you for including in this morning's
hearing, S. 4216, my legislation to establish the Ocmulgee
Mounds National Park and Preserve. As this is an initiative
with overwhelming bipartisan support in the State of Georgia,
extraordinary local support, and I think, Mr. Chairman, you
were kind enough to recognize earlier today, Seth Clark, the
Macon-Bibb County Mayor Pro Tempore and Executive Director of
the Ocmulgee National Park and Preserve Initiative, as well as
Tracie Revis, who is a citizen and former Chief of Staff of the
Muscogee Creek Nation and Director of Advocacy for this park
initiative. This is some of the most extraordinary territory in
the United States, continuously inhabited for more than 12,000
years by members of the Muscogee Creek Nation, exquisite and
invaluable cultural artifacts, gorgeous woodlands along the
banks of the Ocmulgee River. I am grateful to the National Park
Service and the Department of the Interior for working so
closely with my team to develop this legislation. We look
forward to working with both of you on a bipartisan basis to
incorporate any technical advice that is necessary to advance
this legislation to the Senate floor.
I just want to emphasize that not only will this be
transformative for middle Georgia and its economic development
and its tourist economy, to establish Georgia's first-ever
National Park, but it also will be a powerful statement about
the relationship between our state and the Muscogee Creek
Nation and its history and an opportunity for Georgians to
enjoy outdoor education and outdoor recreation in gorgeous
woodland, river banks, and cultural sites. So thank you,
Chairman King and Senator Daines, for your consideration of
this legislation. I am ready to work with you to make sure that
it gets over the line.
Senator King. Thank you, Senator.
Again, I want to thank you, Mr. Caldwell, for your
testimony and for the work that the Park Service does. As I
mentioned at the beginning, I learn a lot at these hearings.
Today, I learned there is a community in Montana called Wisdom,
so I am going to refer to my colleague here as the Senator from
Wisdom from now on.
I want to thank you again, and we will hold the record open
for additional comments and suggestions over the next few days
and look forward to working with you, Mr. Caldwell, and the
National Park Service on these meritorious bills.
Thank you very much. The hearing is closed.
[Whereupon, at 11:14 a.m., the hearing was adjourned.]
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