§100901 Authority of Secretary to Carry Out Certain Activities

Summary

The Secretary may take steps needed to run and protect the System. The Secretary can make contracts to sell or lease services, resources, or water from a System unit to people or state and local governments near the unit. That is allowed only if the activity won’t harm the unit’s main natural or historic resources, the buyer provides visitor services nearby, and there is no reasonable way to get those services elsewhere. The Secretary can put air conditioning in government passenger vehicles used by the Service when long car use or hot, humid areas make it necessary. The Secretary may build and keep utility lines and fire protection facilities next to a unit when needed to provide service. The Secretary can also hire others to operate, repair, maintain, or move government utility lines used for System administration. The Secretary may lend or rent supplies and equipment to cooperating people, agencies, or governments and be paid back. Equipment can be used, repaired, or replaced for System projects or at other agencies’ requests and charged to the proper appropriations. Rental and reimbursement rates must be set to cover actual or estimated costs (operation, repair, maintenance, depreciation, and equipment management), and money received is credited to the appropriation available when payment is made. Equipment may be rented for fire control to state, county, private, or other non‑Federal groups under written cooperative agreements.