§100904 — Title 54 National Park Service and Related Programs | U.S. Code

Summary

The Secretary must keep 100 percent of fees collected for any park unit where a deed prevents charging an entrance or admission fee, and use those funds only for that unit to improve visitor experience, protect and preserve resources, fix and maintain facilities, add signs and interpretation, support habitat or facility work, cover annual operations (including fee collection), and pay for law enforcement. Each year the Director must set aside 10 percent of those funds to distribute by need, then divide the rest so 40 percent is shared based on prior-year operating expenses and 50 percent based on prior-year fees collected; any money not spent stays available for that unit until it is used. Volunteers may sell permits and collect fees if authorized, trained, and bonded, and the Service can pay the bond cost or arrange for outside sellers who must pay for permits up front. If the Service provides transport to view a unit, the Director may charge for it instead of an admission fee; half of that charge stays at the unit (split equally for transportation maintenance and resource protection) and the rest is treated like other fee receipts. When a concessioner provides primary access, the combined charge (concessioner plus admission) cannot exceed the maximum admission fee allowed. The Secretary must also set a commercial tour vehicle fee: $25 per vehicle with capacity of 25 or less and $50 per vehicle with capacity over 25, with some exemptions for school groups and certain contract vehicles; the fee can apply to aircraft over specified park areas or similar high-use sites.

Title 54, §100904

National Park Service and Related Programs — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)(1)Notwithstanding section 107 of the Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1998 (Public Law 105–83, 111 Stat. 1561), the Secretary shall withhold from the special account under section 807(a) of the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (16 U.S.C. 6806(a)) 100 percent of the fees and charges collected in connection with any System unit at which entrance fees or admission fees cannot be collected by reason of deed restrictions.

(2)Amounts withheld under paragraph (1) shall be retained by the Secretary and shall be available, without further appropriation, for expenditure by the Secretary for the System unit with respect to which the amounts were collected for the purposes of enhancing the quality of the visitor experience, protection of resources, repair and maintenance, interpretation, signage, habitat or facility enhancement, resource preservation, annual operation (including fee collection), maintenance, and law enforcement.

(b)(1)Ten percent of the funds made available to the Director under subsection (a) in each fiscal year shall be allocated among System units on the basis of need in a manner to be determined by the Director.

(2)(A)Forty percent of the funds made available to the Director under subsection (a) in each fiscal year shall be allocated among System units in accordance with subparagraph (B) of this subsection and 50 percent shall be allocated in accordance with subparagraph (C).

(B)The amount allocated to each System unit under this paragraph for each fiscal year based on expenses shall be a fraction of the total allocation to all System units under this paragraph. The fraction for each System unit shall be determined by dividing the operating expenses at that System unit during the prior fiscal year by the total operating expenses at all System units during the prior fiscal year.

(C)The amount allocated to each System unit under this paragraph for each fiscal year based on fees collected shall be a fraction of the total allocation to all System units under this paragraph. The fraction for each System unit shall be determined by dividing the user fees and admission fees collected under this section at that System unit during the prior fiscal year by the total of user fees and admission fees collected under this section at all System units during the prior fiscal year.

(3)Amounts allocated under this subsection to any System unit for any fiscal year and not expended in that fiscal year shall remain available for expenditure at that System unit until expended.

(c)(1)When authorized by the Secretary, volunteers at System units may sell permits and collect fees authorized or established pursuant to this section. The Secretary shall ensure that the volunteers have adequate training regarding—

(A)the sale of permits and the collection of fees;

(B)the purposes and resources of the System units in which they are assigned; and

(C)the provision of assistance and information to visitors to the System unit.

(2)The Secretary shall require a surety bond for any such volunteer performing services under this subsection. Funds available to the Service may be used to cover the cost of the surety bond. The Secretary may enter into arrangements with qualified public or private entities pursuant to which the entities may sell (without cost to the United States) annual admission permits (including Golden Eagle Passports) at any appropriate location. The arrangements shall require each such entity to reimburse the United States for the full amount to be received from the sale of the permits at or before the Secretary delivers the permits to the entity for sale.

(d)(1)Where the Service provides transportation to view all or a portion of any System unit, the Director may impose a charge for the service in lieu of an admission fee under this section.

(2)Notwithstanding any other provision of law, half of the charges imposed under paragraph (1) shall be retained by the System unit at which the service was provided. The remainder shall be deposited in the same manner as receipts from fees collected pursuant to this section. Fifty percent of the amount retained shall be expended only for maintenance of transportation systems at the System unit where the charge was imposed. The remaining 50 percent of the retained amount shall be expended only for activities related to resource protection at those System units.

(e)Where the primary public access to a System unit is provided by a concessioner, the Secretary may charge an admission fee at the System unit only to the extent that the total of the fee charged by the concessioner for access to the System unit and the admission fee does not exceed the maximum amount of the admission fee that could otherwise be imposed.

(f)(1)In the case of each System unit for which an admission fee is charged under this section, the Secretary shall establish a commercial tour use fee to be imposed on each vehicle entering the System unit for the purpose of providing commercial tour services within the System unit.

(2)The Secretary shall establish the amount of fee per entry as follows:

(A)Twenty-five dollars per vehicle with a passenger capacity of 25 individuals or less.

(B)Fifty dollars per vehicle with a passenger capacity of more than 25 individuals.

(3)The Secretary may periodically make reasonable adjustments to the commercial tour use fee imposed under this subsection.

(4)The commercial tour use fee imposed under this subsection shall not apply to the following:

(A)Any vehicle transporting organized school groups or outings conducted for educational purposes by schools or other bona fide educational institutions.

(B)Any vehicle entering a System unit pursuant to a contract issued under subchapter II of chapter 1019 of this title.

(5)This subsection shall apply to aircraft entering the airspace of—

(A)Haleakala̅ Crater, Crater Cabins, the Scientific Research Reserve, Halemauu Trail, Kaupo Gap Trail, or any designated tourist viewpoint in Haleakala̅ National Park or of Grand Canyon National Park; or

(B)any other System unit for the specific purpose of providing commercial tour services if the Secretary determines that the level of the services is equal to or greater than the level at the System units specified in subparagraph (A).

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Historical and Revision Notes

Revised SectionSource (U.S. Code)Source (Statutes at Large) 100904(a)16 U.S.C. 460l–6a(i)(1)(C).Pub. L. 88–578, title I, § 4(i)(1)(C), as added Pub. L. 105–327, § 1, Oct. 30, 1998, 112 Stat. 3055; Pub. L. 108–447, div. J, title VIII, § 813(a), Dec. 8, 2004, 118 Stat. 3390, as amended Pub. L. 109–54, title I, § 132, Aug. 2, 2005, 119 Stat. 526. 100904(b) through (e)16 U.S.C. 460l–6a(j) through (m).Pub. L. 88–578, title I, § 4(j) through (m), as added Pub. L. 100–203, title V, § 5201(c), Dec. 22, 1987, 101 Stat. 1330–265. 100904(f)16 U.S.C. 460l–6a(n).Pub. L. 88–578, title I, § 4(n), as added Pub. L. 103–66, title X, § 10002(c), Aug. 10, 1993, 107 Stat. 404. In subsection (c), the word “Secretary” is substituted for “head of the collecting agency”, “head of the agency”, “collecting agency”, and “agency”, and the words “System units” are substituted for “designated areas” and “areas”, because the source provisions apply only to the National Park Service. In subsection (d)(2), the words “into the special account referred to in subsection (i) of this section” are omitted as obsolete. In subsection (e), the words “under subsection (a) of this section” are omitted as obsolete. In subsection (f)(1), the words “by October 1, 1993” are omitted as obsolete. In subsection (f)(4)(B), the words “subchapter II of chapter 1019 of this title” are substituted for “the Act of October 9, 1965 (16 U.S.C. 20–20g) entitled ‘An Act relating to the establishment of concession policies in the areas administered by the National Park Service and for other purposes’ ” because section 415 of the National Park Service Concessions Management Improvement Act of 1998 (Public Law 105–391, 112 Stat. 3515) repealed the Act of October 9, 1965, which was classified as 16 U.S.C. 20 to 20g, and enacted similar provisions, which are restated as subchapter II of chapter 1019 of the new title.

Editorial Notes

References in Text

section 107 of the Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1998, referred to in subsec. (a)(1), is section 107 of Pub. L. 105–83, title I, Nov. 14, 1997, 111 Stat. 1561, which was set out as a note under former section 460l–6a of Title 16, Conservation.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Construction

Pub. L. 109–54, title I, § 132(c), Aug. 2, 2005, 119 Stat. 526, provided that: “Except as provided in this section [amending former section 460l–6a and section 6812 of Title 16, Conservation, and enacting provisions set out as a note under section 6812 of Title 16], section 4(i)(1)(C) of the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 ([former] 16 U.S.C. 460l–6a(i)(1)(C)) [see 54 U.S.C. 100904(a)] shall be applied and administered as if section 813(a) of the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (16 U.S.C. 6812(a)) (and the

Amendments

made by that section [Pub. L. 108–447, amending former section 460l–6a of Title 16]) had not been enacted.”

§100904 Admission and Special Recreation Use Fees