Higher entrance fees are being proposed for Grand Canyon National Park, where the views from the North Rim are gorgeous/NPS.
Need evidence that Congress isn't fully funding the national parks? In their proposal to raise entrance fees, Grand Canyon National Park officials say the higher fees would be put to use, in part, on "repair and maintenance of park facilities" as well as "restoration and rehabilitation of visitor service buildings."
Of course, it can be argued that visitation drives the need for repairs and maintenance. So, too, can time and weather. Visitors don't cause a roof to leak, or paint to peel. Should Congress be seeing the Park Service has the money it needs to address those repairs and maintenance? It's an ongoing debate.
As for the Grand Canyon fee proposal, it calls for a $5 increase, to $30, for a seven-day pass for visitors entering in a vehicle. The park's annual pass would increase from $50 to $60 if the proposal is adopted. And the current rate of $12 per individual or motorcycle would increase to $15 per individual and $25 for a motorcycle.
The current park entrance fees have been in place since 1997, when a seven-day pass was increased from $20 to $25 per vehicle. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, $25 in 1997 is the equivalent to $37.08 in 2014, park officials point out.
The additional revenue from the fee increase will be used to enhance visitor services, including repair and maintenance of park facilities, restoration and rehabilitation of visitor service buildings, additional park programs and transportation services, and increase resource protection. Examples of projects where fee revenue was used include the Bright Angel Trailhead renovation, the re-design of Mather Point, and the Grand Canyon Visitor Center. The park's free shuttle bus system, projected to have 6.8 million boardings in 2014, is also funded by entrance fee income.
A 60-day public engagement period on the proposed fee increase runs through Wednesday, January 7, 2015. Feedback will be accepted via email at [email protected] and via U.S. Mail at: Grand Canyon National Park, Attention: Proposed Fee Increase P.O. Box 129 Grand Canyon, AZ 86023.
The public is also invited to an open house at the 1899 Ballroom of the High Country Conference Center located at 201 West Butler Avenue, Flagstaff, Arizona on Tuesday, December 2, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Comments received during the 60 day public comment period will inform the agency's decision on how or if a fee increase will be implemented.
Comments
This is why folks work for the government. It never quits printing money and when you work for the NPS you can gouge taxpayers without fear of any pesky oversight. What a dream job not to be bothered with having to live within your means and follow budgets like the rest of the working world.
No question in my mind that there are worthwhile projects at Grand Canyon that directly benefit visitors that simply would not be funded without fee dollars. I've visited this park both before the days of the free shuttle system and since the shuttle began running, and that system alone would be more than worth the current or proposed entrance fee. Traffic jams on the West Rim drive at sunset used to be a nightmare. Unlimited use of the system for a week for everyone who enters in your vehicle for even $30 is a bargain.
As to other needs, the story asks, "Should Congress be seeing the Park Service has the money it needs to address those repairs and maintenance?" In my opinion "yes," but Congress hasn't done so, and isn't likely to do so either in the future, so entrance fees are the next best solution.
Backpacker - I'm not an NPS employee but know many, and your partisan blather is so out of connection with reality it sounds like it is from Faux news. Every park employee I know of has not only a tight budget, but a budget inadequate to the needs of the job. Your blind partisan snipes continue to insult many many good people who are trying their best to serve a high ideal.