Maintenance Backlog Reaches $11.9 Billion, National Park Service Says

Although increased congressional funding has been committed ahead of the National Park Service’s 100th anniversary celebration, “the annual bill for maintenance in America’s national parks is still almost twice as much as is appropriated,” Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis said.

The agency last week announced an $11.93 billion deferred maintenance backlog for Fiscal Year 2015 that affects nearly every park unit. That number is $440 million higher than the previous year, but Jarvis said in a release that funding is “moving in the right direction” to keep pace with maintenance responsibilities.

Congressional allocation for the National Park Service in 2016 includes an additional $90 million for non-transportation maintenance. Congress also passed a new highway bill that will provide a $28 million increase for transportation projects in parks this year. Funding for transportation-related maintenance and construction will continue to rise, by $8 million per year for five years, until it reaches $300 million per year in 2020.

Some backlog items were also addressed as part of $48 million in Centennial Challenge projects, which includes money from Congress and matching funds from 90 park partners.

Even though more maintenance items had to be deferred in 2015, Director Jarvis said these increases from Congress are welcome as part of a multifaceted approach to end the growth of deferred maintenance and eventually have enough resources to keep pace with annual maintenance responsibilities.

“We have a lot yet to do but I think everything is moving in the right direction,” Jarvis said. “Congress has pitched in with base funding and with additional funds for the Centennial Challenge – a program that enables us to leverage private and nonprofit partner contributions to complete important projects that improve visitor services in parks. There is more Congress can do through the Centennial Act now under consideration, including short-term mandatory appropriations.”

Deferred maintenance is necessary work – performed on infrastructure, such as roads and bridges, visitor centers, trails and campgrounds – that has been delayed for more than one year. Aging facilities, increasing use of park facilities and scarce resources contribute to the growing backlog.

At the National Parks Conservation Association, President Theresa Pierno said the latest figure amply demonstrates that the National Park Service continues to be underfunded.

“A nearly $12 billion maintenance backlog is further proof that the National Park Service does not have the funding and resources it needs to protect America’s favorite places. And this comes at a time when record-breaking crowds are visiting our national parks. This is the centennial year of the National Park Service. If Congress doesn’t make our parks a national priority in the federal budget now, then when?" she said in a prepared statement. "While Congress did begin to reverse years of declining funding for our national parks with its latest spending bill, the reality is that years of underfunding have significantly harmed our parks.

“The best gift Congress can give to the Park Service on its 100th anniversary is to make sure this year’s budget includes significant increases to the agency’s maintenance and operations accounts,” Ms. Pierno continued. “The Park Service needs these resources to tackle the backlog, fill vacant ranger positions and put parks on the best path toward another century of service.”

As evidence of the needs, Ms. Pierno pointed to needed structural repairs at Santa Fe National Historic Trail, visitor center rehabilitation at Valley Forge National Historical Park, and demolition of unsafe structures that pose a public safety danger due to hazardous building materials they contain at Cape Cod National Seashore.

Nearly every unit in the National Park System has maintenance items that have been deferred. Regions regularly evaluate and prioritize project submissions to ensure available dollars make a difference, and will be using the new funds to address the highest priorities. For details about deferred maintenance at a particular national park, visit go.nps.gov/deferredmaint and click on the NPS Asset Inventory Summary by Park report.