United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2001-11-01 monographic deposited born digital 73 p. GA 1.13:GAO-02-88SP https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-88SP P0b002ee18039e1c0 f:d0288sp DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-28 GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-88SP machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-88SP GAO-02-88SP Land management Maintenance costs National recreation areas Natural resources Surveys User fees Internet NPS Recreational Fee Demonstration Program Other Written Product A02570 To address concerns about the ability of federal land management agencies to provide high-quality recreational opportunities to visitors and to protect resources, Congress authorized the Recreational Fee Demonstration Program. The program focused on recreational activities at four land management agencies: the National Park Service, the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the Forest Service. Under the fee demonstration program, participating agencies were authorized to establish, charge, collect, and use fees at a number of sites to (1) enhance visitor services; (2) address a backlog of needs for repair and maintenance; and (3) manage and protect resources. The agencies applied "entrance fees" for basic admission to an area and "user fees" for specific activities such as camping or launching a boat. Under the law, 80 percent of program revenue must be used at the site where it was collected, and the remaining 20 percent may be distributed to other sites that may or may not be participating in the demonstration program. Some of the sites that GAO surveyed for this study experimented with innovative fee designs and collection methods, such as reducing fees during off-peak seasons and allowing visitors to use credit cards, but room for additional innovation exists, particularly in the areas of fee collection and coordination. Improvements in three areas of program management are needed to enhance program performance. First, the agencies need to evaluate their managers' performance in administering the fee program. Second, the agencies need to develop information on which fee-collection and coordination practices work best. Third, the agencies need to resolve interagency management issues. Since 80 percent of the fees must be used at the site where they are collected, higher priority needs at other sites may not be met. GAO developed an Internet survey accessible to site managers at all 365 fee demonstration sites operating as of September 2000. This report summarizes the responses of the site managers. GAO's analysis of the survey responses are contained in its report (GAO-02-10). https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-88SP/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-88SP.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-88SP/pdf/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-88SP.pdf GAO-02-88SP https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-88SP Other Written Product GAO-02-88SP; Recreational Fee Demonstration Program Survey; Land management Maintenance costs National recreation areas Natural resources Surveys User fees Internet NPS Recreational Fee Demonstration Program