§6802 Recreation Fee Authority

Summary

The Secretary may set, change, and collect recreation fees on federal lands and waters starting in fiscal year 2005. Fees must match the benefits and services visitors get. The Secretary must think about the overall effect on users and providers, look at similar fees elsewhere, follow public policy or management goals, get input from the Recreation Resource Advisory Committee, and consider other relevant factors. The Secretary must keep the number of fees small and avoid charging multiple fees for the same use. There are many limits on fees. Fees cannot be charged for roadside parking or picnicking, general access, low-investment dispersed areas, people just passing through without using services, undeveloped campsites that lack minimum facilities, overlooks or scenic pullouts, travel on public roads used to drive between places outside fee areas, travel to land where a person has property rights, treaty or law hunting or fishing access, official government business, or extra services for people with disabilities. No entrance or standard amenity fee can be charged to anyone under 16, for noncommercial school outings, for several named memorials and certain Alaska areas, for visitors with a valid migratory bird stamp at Fish and Wildlife units, or for people using a valid nonrecreational permit (like grazing). Nothing here limits where recreation can happen. The Interior Department can charge entrance fees for National Park and National Wildlife Refuge units. The Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, and Forest Service cannot charge entrance fees, but they may charge standard amenity fees at certain special areas or places with specific amenities (like parking, toilets, trash, signs, picnic tables, and security). Expanded amenity fees may be charged for special or developed facilities (such as developed campgrounds, boat launches, rentals, hookups, dump stations, special programs, reservation or transport services, staffed emergency sites, and developed swimming areas). Special recreation permits must have public applications and may allow incidental sales. Permit fees can be fixed per permit or per visitor-use day. Predetermined fees must follow rules set before or after January 4, 2025; if none is set, then beginning two years after January 4, 2025, the fee is $6 per visitor-use day. For some organized or commercial uses the agency may instead charge a percentage of adjusted gross receipts (up to 5% or up to 3% for certain permits), with detailed methods for calculating those receipts. Concession contracts, other authorizations, and cost-recovery rules remain in effect. The agencies must post clear notices of fees and passes at sites and on agency websites. Beginning January 1, 2026, they must annually post, where fees are collected, the total fees collected for each of the two prior fiscal years and how those funds were used. To the extent practical, they must also post notices where fee-funded work is done. By January 1, 2025, and within 60 days after each fiscal year begins, agencies must put a searchable list on their websites showing prior-year uses of fee revenue with project title, description, location, and amount obligated. Online payments are allowed for entrance, standard, expanded, and permit fees and must be distributed according to the rules in section 6804(c).