Forum Discussion
43 Replies
wa8yxm wrote:
agesilaus wrote:
If the NPS would stop wasting the money that they do have $2,500,000,000 a year they would be a lot more successful. They need to stop buying more land and concentrate on the properties that they already own: waste
First: where as the 10 dollars went to the park, the 80 dollar fee will go to some "Trust Fund" which Congress can raid like they do the Social Security trust (Congress currently owes we the people over two TRILLION dollars) so your post missed the target on the reason for the increase.
Second: I see a lot of folks saying "80 dollars is not too bad" but recall WE THE PEOPLE who qualify for that pass have been paying for the Parks every April 15th for what..... over 40 years (you have to be 62 to get the 10 dollar pass) we have paid our dues, 10 bucks pays the processing cost.. Pays for the card.. and is a reasonable "Gift" to our seniors who have paid taxes all their life....
Now I got mine, so I don't need to fight this bill,,, but well, a cash grab is a cash grab and that is what is happening here. a cash grab.
You can call it whatever you like but it's still a fact that the national parks system is underfunded for what people expect from them. A great deal of funding for capital improvements comes from non-profit organizations like the National Parks Foundation. If your taxes had been enough to support them, those funds would not (and in my opinion, should not) be needed.
I agree with you that revenues taken in by and/or earmarked for the National Parks should not be viewed as a source of ready cash for other uses until the parks system is sufficiently well funded to be able to support itself.agesilaus wrote:
If the NPS would stop wasting the money that they do have $2,500,000,000 a year they would be a lot more successful. They need to stop buying more land and concentrate on the properties that they already own: waste
First: where as the 10 dollars went to the park, the 80 dollar fee will go to some "Trust Fund" which Congress can raid like they do the Social Security trust (Congress currently owes we the people over two TRILLION dollars) so your post missed the target on the reason for the increase.
Second: I see a lot of folks saying "80 dollars is not too bad" but recall WE THE PEOPLE who qualify for that pass have been paying for the Parks every April 15th for what..... over 40 years (you have to be 62 to get the 10 dollar pass) we have paid our dues, 10 bucks pays the processing cost.. Pays for the card.. and is a reasonable "Gift" to our seniors who have paid taxes all their life....
Now I got mine, so I don't need to fight this bill,,, but well, a cash grab is a cash grab and that is what is happening here. a cash grab.ktmrfs wrote:
when the pass was $10 the money supposedly went directly to the park that you purchased the pass at if you purchased it that way. We went to some small federal parks and they confirmed this when we got ours.
Hopefully it will the same with the new price.
It sounds like this new program will actually change the allocation/distribution of the funds directed from the senior pass. I'm not completely sure of exactly what the Endowment funds will end up funding (sounds like maybe deferred maintenance - which actually would be a good thing...but that's just a guess on my part).
The challenge fund money can only be spent if it is matched by non-government funds. I guess the idea is to encourage large granting organizations to participate more.
In the past, the funds from the passes and other recreation funds collected could be used for a variety of programs at the local park level.
The legislation, drafted by U.S. Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, calls for the deposit of up to $10 million generated from all Park Service sales of America The Beautiful - The National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Passes into a Second Century Endowment for the Park Service to be managed by the National Park Foundation. Any revenues above $10 million would be deposited into a Centennial Challenge fund for projects in the parks. However, those dollars would need to be matched by private dollars before they could be spent.
Under that formula, the theoretical $46 million figure cited above would deposit $10 million into the Second Century Endowment and $36 million into the Centennial Challenge fund.
"The full $80 from sale of the lifetime senior pass and full $20 from sale of the new annual pass will be deposited in either the Second Century Endowment (amounts up to $10 million) or the Centennial Challenge Fund (amounts in excess of $10 million)," Elise Daniel, the committee's press secretary, said in an email. "This means that revenue from sales of the senior pass will not be used in the same way as revenue from sales of non-senior annual passes."- A lot of us complain about the price of entrance, and seeks discounts on everything, but want good services. The two are generally incompatible.
And, yes, we take it - the discount - but it allows us to spend more time in the parks and spend more money there and in the local economy too.
It's one of the least expensive entrance and camping fees for recreation activities in the world. And carries with it the additional benefit of protecting our forests, deserts, mountains, seashores, and wildlife. That's the true benefit of our National Parks and protected wilderness areas. - when the pass was $10 the money supposedly went directly to the park that you purchased the pass at if you purchased it that way. We went to some small federal parks and they confirmed this when we got ours.
Hopefully it will the same with the new price. - $80 ain't bad at all for a lifetime pass. Hope it's still that price when I'm 62 in 8 years.
- $80 is still a bargain...
- At $80. It's still a bargin, just not as a good.
