Letter to the Honorable Ken Calvert, Chairman and the Honorable Betty McCollum, Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies - Support for National Park Foundation in 2019

Letter

Congressman Scott Tipton (CO-03) led a bipartisan letter to House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies leadership requesting support for the National Park Foundation in fiscal year 2019. Tipton was joined on the letter by a bipartisan group of 29 House colleagues.

The letter reads, in part:

"Our national parks are the crown jewels of our public lands, with more than 330 million visits in 2016 generating more than $18 billion in spending for the economy. They tell important and sometimes difficult stories about American history and serve as places for education, outdoor activities, research, volunteerism, and appreciating the great outdoors.

"One of the primary goals of the National Park Service Centennial Act, which passed at the end of 2016, is to create a more holistic funding model for our parks by capitalizing on the increased enthusiasm we have seen for philanthropy for our national parks.

"The National Park Foundation is the Congressionally-chartered philanthropic partner of the National Park Service and is at the forefront of a record fundraising effort throughout the parks community. The appropriation authorized in the National Park Service Centennial Act will go to improve the visitor experience throughout the system. This appropriation is required to be matched at least $1:$1 with philanthropic dollars and the National Park Foundation is confident of its ability to leverage these federal dollars to an even greater degree."

View the complete letter here.

Background

The National Park Service Centennial Act of 2016 authorizes $5 million in appropriations for the National Park Foundation for each fiscal year through fiscal year 2023. The appropriation authorized in the National Park Service Centennial Act is used to improve visitor experience and is required to be matched equally in private dollars. In fiscal year 2017, the National Park Foundation awarded approximately 585 grants totaling over $41.6 million to 329 parks, offices, partners, and federal sites.