News

Opening Statement
Chairman Stevan Pearce
April 6, 2006

The Subcommittee will come to order.

Good morning. Today the Subcommittee on National Parks will receive testimony on visitation trends in the National Park System and what the National Park Service may be doing to respond.

When Stephen Mather was given the awesome responsibility in 1917 to guide the newly created National Park Service and its 14 national parks and monuments, he knew then what we all know today; for the national parks and the system to prosper, visitors must be attracted to and accommodated by those parks. An advocacy must be created. While the National Park System today contains 390 distinct units, I believe it still faces some of the same concerns expressed by Mr. Mather — relevancy, viability, choices, and experience.

Today, as a whole, visitation throughout the National Park System continues to decline since its historical high of 287 million in 1999. While the tragic events of September 11, 2001, certainly affected many aspects of life in the United States, our economy has continued to rebound, yet overall visitation to the National Parks has dropped.

Since becoming Chairman of the National Parks Subcommittee, I have held a series of oversight hearings on the NPS Budget, the NPS Organic Act, the NPS Management Policies, Director’s Order 21, and NPS business plans. I have done so not to alarm people, but so members of this subcommittee may have serious and in-depth discussions with the Park Service, with stakeholders, and users on the purpose of the National Park System, how the Park Service intends to accomplish manage the park system, and what priority is given to enhancing the visitor experience.

During the subcommittee’s oversight hearing on the NPS Management Policies, one witness made an astute observation. He stated that the NPS is part of a new global tourist market that offers – both domestically and internationally – so much more for the leisure dollar. The NPS is no longer the lone caterer to the family in the station wagon. It must become more dynamic in attracting new visitors while retaining its current user base.

One example of such efforts is detailed in a recent Chicago-Sun Times story where students are described using the Internet to participate in an E-Trip at Yellowstone National Park. People must be given an opportunity to develop an emotional tie with the parks, even if the closet they ever get to them is a webcam image on their computer. According to the article, recent research indicates that people in their mid-teens to mid-20's are going to parks less. Visitation by minorities, including Hispanics and blacks, is lower than it is for whites – in some cases substantially lower. This reinforces the need for the NPS to be more creative in attracting new visitors to the parks.

In its 2001 Technical Report, the 90-year-old National Park Service released its first, and to date only, comprehensive survey of the public. Unlike its annual visitor surveys, this study sampled citizens who have not visited National Park System units. Its findings describe not only what people like about the parks, but also what turns them off. The frank criticism found in the report is critical when considering why some parks are not sustaining their peak visitation numbers. But the survey was conducted in May 2000 – long before the events of Sept. 11 changed the attitudes and economics of the American landscape. With park visitation continuing to slide since that time, an updated survey of why people may or may not be visiting their parks may be in order.

I believe the National Park System must remain relevant by developing a diverse visitor base, and creating a welcoming experience while conserving the resource. Accomplishing this task in a world economy driven by access to information is all the more challenging.

We thank all of the witnesses that will appear before the subcommittee today, and look forward to your testimony. I now recognize Mrs. Christensen for her opening statement.