President Joe Biden’s Interior Department directed National Park Service (NPS) Director Chuck Sams to shift $200 million in government money to a park in Representative Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) district, bringing additional attention from House Republicans.
Sams reportedly informed Congress last week that Shannon Estenoz, Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks at the Interior Department, had instructed Sams to make a transfer of $200 million to the Presidio Trust, a federal organization that manages the Presidio, a 1,500-acre former military installation now used for public recreation in Pelosi’s district close to the Golden Gate Bridge.
“Despite the fact that the statute didn’t express it, Sams was informed by officials that they had come to the conclusion that Congress had intended to spend the $200 million in that way,” according to the Washington Times. “Mr. Sams admitted last week that transferring the money went against a number of his organization’s rules.”
Rep. Thomas Tiffany (R-WI) voiced his fear that the NPS is evolving into “Nancy’s Park Service” during a House Natural Resources hearing.
“NPS refers to the National Park Service to us.” “We’re very concerned that this has turned into Nancy’s Park Service,” Tiffany explained to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland.
Along with the $200 million given to the Presidio, NPA also donated $63.6 million for Alcatraz as well as $102.3 million for the City of San Francisco Maritime National Historic Park to Pelosi’s district.
Pelosi’s district acquired $365.9 million from NPS, accounting for roughly one-quarter of the total $1.5 billion Congress allotted to NPA during fiscal year 2023.
Representatives Bruce Westerman (R-AR) and Tiffany asked Estenoz for further details on the $200 million transfer in a letter.
According to the letter:
“As you’re surely aware, the National Park System has at present $22.3 billion in pending maintenance as well as repairs.” This fiscal year, the NPS received approximately $1.53 billion in discretionary and mandatory funding, including $1.33 billion from the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) along with $200 million from the IRA, for dealing with priority delayed maintenance tasks across the country. Concerningly, approximately 24% of such funds went toward a single Congressional district, which was represented by former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, including the whole $200 million set aside for deferred repair in the IRA.”
Sams’ testimony, according to the Republican congressman, “raised many concerns about whether or not the many hundreds of millions of dollars in funding that taxpayers have shifted to the historic Presidio in the city of San Francisco will be properly utilized for delayed upkeep and repairs.”
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