Since the enactment of the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) in 2020, historic amounts of funding have been directed toward the restoration and repair of America’s national parks. However, despite the increased federal investment into these parks, the National Park Service (NPS) faces a significant deferred maintenance backlog, with numerous projects behind schedule or overdue. In fact, the backlog has grown substantially since the GAOA’s enactment, increasing from $14.9 billion in 2020 to $23.3 billion in 2023. In November, the Property and Environment Research Center (PERC) released the report-A Path Forward for America’s Best Idea– highlighting this issue and offering recommendations on how the GAOA and the Legacy Restoration Fund could be more effectively utilized going forward.
The GAOA established the Legacy Restoration Fund, which allocates up to $1.3 billion annually to the NPS for various critical restoration projects. These projects include repairing roads, restoring water treatment systems, and upgrading campsites and trails. The GAOA has prompted more than 100 large scale projects and hundreds of smaller initiatives across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Notable projects funded by the Legacy Restoration Fund currently underway are the $200 million Transcanyon Waterline restoration project in Grand Canyon National Park, the $34 million Hawaii Volcanoes National Park water treatment project, and the $113 million Tidal Basin seawall restoration project by the nation’s capital.
Beyond these major projects, the NPS is prioritizing investments into projects that would otherwise affect the safety of its visitors if not adequately addressed. However, concerns have arisen regarding other project selections, which some argue are overly politicized. Critics suggest that funding is being spread across parks in every state and U.S. territory rather than focusing on areas with the most urgent needs. PERC warns that this “peanut butter spread” approach risks spreading resources too thin to tackle critical issues. “Congress could help make sure that funding from the Legacy Restoration Fund is allocated based on logic first and foremost, rather than political clout, by directing the National Park Service to prioritize projects based on objective factors, namely safety and visitation,” says Tate Watkins, author of the PERC report.
Additionally, Republicans in the House have criticized the $166 million allocated to two small parks in Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) district. They argue that this money could have been better spent addressing the massive deferred maintenance backlog affecting 35 parks across eleven states rather than to more politically preferred projects. They also claim too much funding has gone to urban parks instead of the “crown jewels of America” located in more remote areas.
Whether Republicans or Democrats favor the NPS approach, two key nonpartisan questions remain: Why has the backlog grown so significantly despite receiving all this funding?
One primary reason is the current deferred maintenance backlog system. The Government Accountability Office and the Interior Department’s inspector general have claimed the system is “illogical, inaccurate, and unexplainable.” The terminology is outdated, and the criteria for determining that a project is “overdue” are obscure. PERC’s first recommendation to address this issue is to reform the current system by incorporating both parametric condition assessments—visual trail examinations—and the “preexisting Federal Highway Administration” inspection framework into it.
Another outstanding question is how can the NPS improve its strategy to ensure effective park restoration and inspire Congress to continue investing in America’s National Parks after the Legacy Restoration Fund expires in September 2025? PERC suggests that Congress shift future funding priorities from focusing solely on “deferred maintenance” to broader stewardship goals while also ensuring that investments made through the GAOA are properly protected and maintained. The report highlights successful aspects of GAOA, such as the ability to earn interest and provide long-term flexibility for projects, and suggests a GAOA 2.0 should retain them. PERC also advises prioritizing maintenance projects based on safety and visitor impact, exploring innovative ways to generate funding through visitor fees, and considering long-term planning for infrastructure needs.“When it comes to the fundamental issue of stewarding parks over the long run, finding more and more creative ways to harness visitor fees could go a long way. Fee revenues have become a big source of funding at many of the highest-profile parks that feel the stress of recent booms in visitation, and several aspects of the fee system align the incentives of park staff and the visitors they serve,” explains Watkins. The report concludes by emphasizing that maintenance issues will never be fully resolved, so the NPS should set realistic expectations about the ongoing work required.
By adopting many of PERC’s recommendations, the NPS can restore “America’s Best Idea” to its fullest potential. “It might be easy to agree that fixing a bridge used by tens of thousands of visitors a day in the summer is a top priority. But the park service manages more than 70,000 assets, so with such a large portfolio, it’s crucial to have clear and objective criteria about how to prioritize needs,” says Watkins. It is essential that parks remain free from political influence, with project funding decisions based on merit and need rather than partisan agendas.
The views and opinions expressed are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of C3.
