Opposing  Recreation Fees on Public Lands CONGRESSMAN ADAM B. SCHIFF OF CALIFORNIA IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Thursday, July 17, 2003 The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2691) making appropriations for the Department of the Interior and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2004, and for other purposes. Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of the DeFazio-Bradley amendment to strike the Mr. Recreational Fee Demonstration program from the Interior Appropriations bill. This program is punitive, unfair, and mismanaged. The Recreation Fee Demonstration program allows the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Park Service to charge citizens to recreate on public land, including primitive trails and unimproved campgrounds. I believe--as do many of my constituents who hike and picnic in the Angeles National Forest in Southern California--that it is patently unfair to charge them a fee to hike or picnic in these undeveloped public lands that they already support with their tax dollars. The GAO has recently found evidence of serious mismanagement of the Recreation Fee program. Only 50 cents of every dollar collected is actually used to maintain or improve our public lands. This mismanagement is unacceptable, and we must not allow it to continue. Let me be clear that I strongly support the National Park System, and users have already paid fees for use of National Parks, as well as developed campsites, boat launches, and other developed areas. Evidence shows that the National Park Service has a much more impressive track record in utilizing its program fees towards maintenance backlogs in national parks. Nonetheless, we must not allow the Recreation Fee Demonstration program to continue without enhanced Congressional oversight. I urge my colleagues to support the DeFazio-Bradley amendment to strike this wasteful program.