Verified Document

Financial Structure Of The National Park Service Essay

¶ … financial structure of the National Park Service (NPS). It reviews their operations, discussing how they generate revenue and manage their financing. The paper also reviews their financial performance along with their organizational structure. The NPS had its beginning when Congress set aside the watershed of the Yellowstone River "for the benefit and enjoyment of the people" with the Yellowstone National Park Act of 1872. The actual system of national parks administered under a federal bureau began with the creation of the NPS on August 25, 1916 when President Woodrow Wilson signed the Organic Act. Established under the U.S. Department of the Interior, the NPS was responsible for protecting the 40 national parks and monuments then in existence (Smith, 2011).

There was no single agency providing unified management of the varied federal parklands until an Executive Order in 1933 transferred 63 national monuments and military sites from the Forest Service and War Department to the NPS. This action was a significant step in the development of today's truly national system of parks, a system that includes areas of historical, cultural, scientific, and scenic importance. Currently additions to the NPS are generally made through acts of Congress, and likewise national parks can be created only through such acts. The NPS today is made up of more than 380 areas that cover more than 83 million acres in 49 states, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, Saipan, and the Virgin Islands (Smith, 2011).

The NPS is under the executive branch of the U.S. Government, Department of the Interior, headed up by Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, a member of the Cabinet of the President. Reporting to Salazar is the NPS Director, with headquarters located in Washington D.C. The Comptroller, who reports to the Director, has the following departments reporting to him: Accounting Operations Center, Budget Formulation, Budget Execution, Budget Construction, Property Management, Audits and Accountability, and GSA Space (Headquarters Organization 2005).

The NPS develops a budget each February for the next fiscal year...

The budget defines NPS goals and objectives, as well as the funding necessary to accomplish them. The NPS budget is rolled up into the budget for the Department of the Interior, and then with the rest of the Executive Branch, and then submitted to Congress for review and approval. The following data shows the most recent funding and employee levels:
FY2011 (request) $3.14 billion 21,501 employees

FY 2010 $3.16 billion 21, 574 employees

FY 2009 $2.92 billion 20, 876 employees (Budget, 2010)

In addition to appropriated funds, the NPS is authorized to collect and retain revenue from specific sources:

Recreation fees: approximately $190 million per year

Park concessions franchise fees: approximately $60 million per year

Filming and photography special use fees: approximately $1.2 million per year

An additional source of funds is provided by the National Park Foundation, NPS' Congressionally chartered national philanthropic partner which donates money, property and time to the NPS (Budget, 2010).

NPS revenues derive primarily from park visitors. In 2010, the NPS was host to 281.3 million visitors, a decrease of 1.5% from 2009. The 2011 forecast projects an increase of 1.7% to 286.2 million visitors, with 2012 forecasts for a 1% increase to 288.9 million guests (Public Use Statistics Office, 2011). A significant source of NPS revenues is entrance fees. Repanshek reports that entrance fees revenues across the NPS dipped slightly in 2010 by comparison with 2009; NPS officials are uncertain as to what caused the decline (Repanshek, 2011).

In 2010, fees from park specific passes, daily entrance fees, various interagency fees, and commercial fees totaled $125,776,233, a decrease from $129,640,627 in 2009, according to figures tracked by Jan Moore, NPS' fee program manager in Washington D.C. Only 139 of the NPS' 394 units collect entrance fees (Repanshek, 2011).

Daily entrance fees showed the biggest decline, dropping from $84.5 million in 2009 to $78.5 million in 2010. Moore does not know whether three fee-free…

Sources used in this document:
Works Cited

About Us. (2011). National Park Service Website. Retrieved July 9, 2011 from http://concessions.nps.gov/about_us.htm

Annual Report 2010. (2011). National Park Foundation Website. Retrieved July 9, 2011 from http://www.nationalparks.org/files/about/financials/annual-report-2010.pdf

Budget. (2010). National Park Service Website, About Us. Retrieved July 9, 2011 from http://www.nps.gov/aboutus/budget.htm

Financial Analysis. (2011). National Park Service Website, Management Topics. Retrieved July 9, 2011 from http://concessions.nps.gov/man_finance.htm
Headquarters Organization. (2005). NPS website. Retrieved July 9, 2011 from http://www.nps.gov/aboutus/loader.cfm?csModule=security/getfile&PageID=125307
Public Use Statistics Office. (2011). Statistical Abstract 2010. Retrieved July 9, 2011 from http://www.nature.nps.gov/socialscience/docs/PUSO_Abstract_2010.pdf
Repanshek, K. (2011). Entrance fee revenues dipped slightly in 2010 across the National Park System from 2009 levels. Retrieved July 9, 2011 from http://nationalparkstraveler.com/2011/01/entrance-fee-revenues-dipped-slightly-2010-across-national-park-system-2009-levels7533
Smith, D. (2011). National parks -- A brief history. Retrieved July 9, 2011 from http://usparks.about.com/od/nationalparksus/a/natlparkhistory.htm
When did the NPS begin? (n.d.). NPS website. Retrieved July 9, 2011 from http://www.nps.gov/legacy/legacy.html
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Service Agency Recreation and Leisure
Words: 1202 Length: 4 Document Type: Term Paper

The YMCA states the following statistics: 1,712 Ys work with elementary schools; 1,406 Ys work with middle schools; 810 Ys work with homeschool programs; 1,282 Ys work with hospitals; 1,515 Ys work with churches; and 519 Ys work with juvenile courts (About the YMCA, 2007) V. Other Services Provided by YMCA Recreation and leisure services are only a part of the YMCA's program scope and reaches "far beyond the United States" into more than 120 foreign

National Incident Management System
Words: 5608 Length: 17 Document Type: Term Paper

National Incident Management System Theoretical Analysis of National Incident Management System (NIMS) The Federal Government established the National Incident Management System (NIMS) under the Homeland Security Presidential Directive number 5 in February 2003. The Secretary of Homeland Security played an important role of developing and administering national incident management system. NIMS provide a reliable and consistent approach to responding to all forms of incidents irrespective of size and scope (Walsh 2012). The

Offshore Financial Centres and Their
Words: 22477 Length: 60 Document Type: Dissertation

Because the home country is not required to reimburse foreign depositors for losses, there is no corresponding financial penalty for lax supervision; there is, though, a benefit to the country with lenient regulatory policies because of increased revenues generated and the employment opportunities these services provide (Edwards 1999). Furthermore, banks seeking to conduct multinational business are attracted to countries where incorporation laws and the regulatory framework offer less regulatory oversight

Branding New Service Dominant Logic
Words: 12522 Length: 50 Document Type: Dissertation

Branding in Service Markets Amp Aim And Objectives Themes for AMP Characteristics Composing Branding Concept Branding Evolution S-D Logic and Service Markets Branding Challenges in Service Markets Considerations for Effective Service Branding Categories and Themes Branding Theory Evolution S-D Logic and Service Markets Branding Challenges in Service Markets Considerations for Effective Service Branding Branding Concept Characteristics Characteristics Composing Branding Concept Sampling of Studies Reviewed Evolution of Branding Theory Evolution of Marketing Service-Brand-Relationship-Value Triangle Brand Identity, Position & Image Just as marketing increasingly influences most aspects of the consumer's lives, brands

Service Providers on Special Student Achievement Students
Words: 6882 Length: 15 Document Type: Research Paper

Service Providers on Special student Achievement Students all over the world face the problem of getting low grades in their educational career. There are various factors which play a significant role in student achievement. Certain entities which play a role in student achievement includes, but not limited to, ELL teachers, counselors, occupational therapists, speech therapists and physical therapists. For the purpose of this study, we have selected Sto-Lo Youth Healing

Museum Budget Cuts One-Page Memo
Words: 1877 Length: 4 Document Type: Term Paper

Rank VI personnel: senior technician; supervisory staff, chief technician, assistant to specialists, 1 senior secretary, graduate trainee. Rank VII personnel Senior clerical staff technician senior clerk, senior switchboard, security supervisor. A junior trainee mgrs. Keeping only Sr. switchboard, Jr. trainee mgrs Skilled grade: craftspersons salaries clerk computer operator security men. Keeping 1 craftsperson, salaries clerk, and 3 security guards Semi-Skilled Grade: general driver general clerk typist/receptionists. Entertainment and publicity budget Limited events with volunteer help, donated food, drink and entertainment Total Employees Before = 55) After cuts) 34 Total

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now