[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 49 (Thursday, April 21, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Page S4131]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. McCAIN (for himself, Mr. Alexander, Mr. Lieberman, Mr. 
        Salazar, and Mrs. Feinstein):
  S. 886. A bill to eliminate the annual operating deficit and 
maintenance backlog in the national parks, and for other purposes; to 
the Committee on Finance.
  Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I am pleased to be joined today by 
Senators Alexander, Lieberman, Salazar, and Feinstein in introducing 
legislation to restore and maintain our National Parks by the 
centennial anniversary of the National Park System in 2016.
  Heralding the establishment of the first National Parks, President 
Theodore Roosevelt stated, ``We have fallen heirs to the most glorious 
heritage a people ever received, and each one must do his part if we 
wish to show that the nation is worthy of its good fortune.''
  And what a priceless fortune Americans enjoy--Yellowstone, the Grand 
Canyon, Yosemite, the Tetons, Mt. Rushmore, the Everglades, and 
hundreds of other extraordinary national parks that grace our country. 
Hundreds of millions of families and visitors from all over the world 
have visited these parks for recreational, educational, and cultural 
opportunities as well as the sheer pleasure of being surrounded by 
their natural beauty or historical significance.
  Unfortunately, all of this public enjoyment and use coupled with the 
lack of adequate financial investment in our parks has left them in a 
state of disrepair and neglect. A multi-billion dollar maintenance 
backlog has cast a long shadow over the glory of our national park 
heritage. An annual operating deficit estimated at $600 million has 
further diminished the integrity of national park programs and 
facilities.
  The National Parks Centennial Act would allow all Americans to 
contribute to the restoration of the parks through the creation of a 
Centennial Fund with monies generated by a check-off box on federal tax 
returns. The funds collected will be directed to the priority 
maintenance and operation needs of the national parks to make them 
fiscally sound by 2016. What better way or time to demonstrate that 
``we are worthy of the good fortune of our parks''?
  I commend the National Parks Conservation Association for promoting 
this sound and innovative approach to remedying the significant 
deterioration of our parks. A companion House bill has been introduced 
by Representatives Souder and Baird with solid bipartisan support.
  Surely this is legislation that we can all agree on and support. All 
of our lives have been enriched by our National Parks. This bill 
provides an opportunity to show our appreciation to restore and 
maintain our country's cultural and natural heritage for generations to 
come. The passage of this legislation will ensure that our national 
parks will have a glorious 100th birthday to celebrate. Let's get on 
with it!
  Mr. ALEXANDER. Today I am joining with Senators McCain, Lieberman, 
Salazar and Feinstein in introducing the National Park Centennial Act--
a bill to make the National Park System fiscally sound by its 100th 
birthday in 2016. The park system currently suffers from a multi-
billion dollar backlog of maintenance projects and an operating deficit 
that exceeds $600 million each year.
  The Centennial Act aims to remedy this crisis by giving tax-payers 
the opportunity to check off a box on their tax returns each year that 
would send a small contribution to a National Park Centennial Fund. 
Today, taxpayers can contribute $3 to Presidential elections. This Act 
gives taxpayers an opportunity to contribute directly to our national 
parks via their tax returns.
  Our parks are national treasures, and they deserve to be preserved in 
all their pristine glory. They are a part of our heritage.
  It is a national travesty that they suffer from such a terrible lack 
of funding. The overall backlog, according to the Congressional 
Research Service, is about $7 billion, though estimates vary by about 
$2 billion in either direction.
  My own State, along with our neighbor North Carolina, is home to the 
country's most visited national park, the Great Smoky Mountains 
National Park. I live just a few miles from the park myself.
  In Tennessee, we have tried to deal with the maintenance backlog in a 
number of different ways. More than 2,100 volunteers have provided over 
110,000 man-hours of service to the park, which is the equivalent of 50 
staff and $1.9 million in extra funding. That's the third best 
volunteer rate in the National Park System.
  Our local communities in Tennessee and North Carolina have 
established a non-profit organization to help support the park--
``Friends of the Smokies''--which has raised more than $8 million since 
its founding in 1993 through individual, corporate and foundation 
contributions, merchandise sales, special events, and sales of 
specialty license plates in Tennessee and North Carolina. Friends now 
has over 2,000 members. In addition to its fundraising activities, 
Friends of the Smokies coordinates more than 80 volunteers who provide 
direct and indirect assistance with projects that benefit Great Smoky 
Mountains National Park.
  Yet, despite all this extra support, the backlog in the Great Smoky 
Mountains National Park remains significant. The Park's current 
maintenance backlog is estimated at approximately $180 million dollars. 
It is estimated that the Great Smokies will receive up to $36 million 
over the next 5 years to address the maintenance backlog. There is over 
a $140 million shortfall at the Great Smokies alone.
  Examples of maintenance backlog projects at the Smokies are:
  Rehabilitation of North Shore Cemetery access routes; rehabilitation 
of three comfort stations at Balsam Mountain; rehabilitation of three 
comfort stations at Chimney Tops picnic area; rehabilitation of 
Newfound Gap Road, phase one; replace obsolete parkwide key system; 
repave Clingmans Dome Trail.
  We need to do better. It will be hard to do better in this budget 
environment. So this is an innovative way to help the parks do better.
  Sixty percent of this fund will go to maintenance backlogs. Forty 
percent of this fund will supplement the annual operating deficits at 
the parks. This program will terminate in 2016.
  Parallel legislation has already been introduced in the House of 
Representatives, including Congressman Jimmy Duncan. I hope Congress 
will move quickly to address this critical need of our national parks.
  Our national parks are national treasures. They are a part of our 
heritage, a part of who we are as Americans. We need to take care of 
these parks so that they are still there, in all their glory, and still 
accessible for many generations to come.
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