Title 16ConservationRelease 119-73

§3197 Revenue-producing visitor services

Title 16 › Chapter CHAPTER 51— - ALASKA NATIONAL INTEREST LANDS CONSERVATION › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER VI— - ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS › § 3197

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary must let people who, on or before January 1, 1979, were already providing visitor services in a conservation unit keep offering the same or similar services. The services must fit the reasons the unit was created and follow reasonable terms the Secretary sets. When picking who will provide visitor services (except sport hunting and fishing guides), the Secretary must prefer Native Corporations most affected by the unit and then people the Secretary calls local residents. The Secretary must also offer Cook Inlet Region, Incorporated, working with Village Corporations when needed, the right of first refusal to start new fee-based visitor services in the Kenai National Moose Range or the part of Lake Clark National Park and Preserve inside the Cook Inlet Region. That right must remain open for ninety days as agreed in paragraph VIII of the document referred to in section 12 of the Act of January 2, 1976 (Public Law 94–204). Visitor service means any service visitors pay for, such as food, lodging, transportation, tours, and guides, except guiding for sport hunting and fishing. Federal and Alaska state governments still have the authority to license and regulate transportation services.

Full Legal Text

Title 16, §3197

Conservation — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary, under such terms and conditions as he determines are reasonable, shall permit any persons who, on or before January 1, 1979, were engaged in adequately providing any type of visitor service within any area established as or added to a conservation system unit to continue providing such type of service and similar types of visitor services within such area if such service or services are consistent with the purposes for which such unit is established or expanded.
(b)Notwithstanding provisions of law other than those contained in subsection (a), in selecting persons to provide (and in contracting for the provision of) any type of visitor service for any conservation system unit, except sport fishing and hunting guiding activities, the Secretary—
(1)shall give preference to the Native Corporations which the Secretary determines are most directly affected by the establishment or expansion of such unit by or under the provisions of this Act;
(2)shall give preference to persons whom he determines, by rule, are local residents; and
(3)shall, consistent with the provisions of this section, offer to Cook Inlet Region, Incorporated, in cooperation with Village Corporations within the Cook Inlet Region when appropriate, the right of first refusal to provide new revenue producing visitor services within the Kenai National Moose Range or that portion of the Lake Clark National Park and Preserve within the boundaries of the Cook Inlet Region that right to remain open for a period of ninety days as agreed to in paragraph VIII of the document referred to in section 12 of the Act of January 2, 1976 (Public Law 94–204).
(c)As used in this section, the term “visitor service” means any service made available for a fee or charge to persons who visit a conservation system unit, including such services as providing food, accommodations, transportation, tours, and guides excepting the guiding of sport hunting and fishing. Nothing in this Act shall limit or affect the authority of the Federal Government or the State of Alaska to license and regulate transportation services.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

This Act, referred to in subsecs. (b)(1) and (c), is Pub. L. 96–487, Dec. 2, 1980, 94 Stat. 2371, known as the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

note set out under section 3101 of this title and Tables. section 12 of the Act of January 2, 1976 (Public Law 94–204), referred to in subsec. (b)(3), is section 12 of Pub. L. 94–204, Jan. 2, 1976, 89 Stat. 1150, which is set out as a note under section 1611 of Title 43, Public Lands.

Amendments

1998—Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 105–333 substituted “Native Corporations” for “Native Corporation” and “are most directly affected” for “is most directly affected”.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

16 U.S.C. § 3197

Title 16Conservation

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73