Before retiring, I was the Recreation and Wilderness program manager for a 3 million acre national forest with 40 different developed campgrounds. Much of what is said in the previous posts is true to at least some extent.
First, a specific national forest will identify an overall recreation niche that it best serves. Generally, you will find less-developed campsites in NFs (no electricity, water is available, but not as hookups). But that doesn't mean the NF will not have Any modern campgrounds. Of the 40 campgrounds we had, we identified 2 for complete modernization. These were in high use areas, and got elec. and water hookups, several very modern shower houses, paved roads, boardwalks, boat ramps, visitor center and childrens playground. Attendance at such sites skyrocketed, and they are very popular.
In other areas, we tried very much to not compete with private campgrounds who offered more developed sites. And many people do not want their favorite campground to be highly developed, but prefer a more low key camping experience.
It is also true that money is tight, and that improvements often go to favorite sites, or to a Ranger District where the staff are "go getters." This is just natural. If program managers have one Ranger District that is eager and excited to improve their infrastructure and bring in partners and partner funding opportunities, and another Ranger District has a laid back staff that is content to just clean. And maintain their existing facilities, who do you think will get the money for new facilities? It is a fact of life.
Finally, many National Forest (and state park) campgrounds are concessioned out (run by contractors). Once again, some concessioners are very progressive and active. We had a concessioner that came to us wanting to construct camper cabins at his own expense. He did a great job, extended the camping season, and ultimately got approval to build a second one. Other concessioners are much less progressive, and must be constantly pushed to perform basic maintenance and repair.
A few years ago, every National Forest went through a very detailed analysis of their recreation infrastructure, including use level, maintenance costs, and condition of buildings. Based on these and other factors, each site was ranked in terms of its priority for improvements, maintenance, and in some cases, decomissioning of some parts of the site, or closing of the entire site. This info is available from your local USFS office if you want to know the plans for your favorite NF campground or picnic site.
