Fish and Wildlife Service) and the Secretary of Agriculture (acting through the Forest Service) shall each implement a fee program to demonstrate the feasibility of user-generated cost recovery for the operation and maintenance of recreation areas or sites and habitat enhancement projects on Federal lands.
(b) In carrying out the pilot program established pursuant to this section, the appropriate Secretary shall select from areas under the jurisdiction of each of the four agencies referred to in subsection (a) no fewer than 10, but as many as 50, areas, sites or projects for fee demonstration. For each such demonstration, the Secretary, notwithstanding any other provision of law-
(1) shall charge and collect fees for admission to the area or for the use of outdoor recreation sites, facilities, visitor centers, equipment, and services by individuals and groups, or any combination thereof;
(2) shall establish fees under this section based upon a
variety of cost recovery and fair market valuation methods to
provide a broad basis for feasibility testing;
(3) may contract, including provisions for reasonable
commissions, with any public or private entity to provide
visitor services, including reservations and information, and
may accept services of volunteers to collect fees charged
pursuant to paragraph (1);
(4) may encourage private investment and partnerships to
enhance the delivery of quality customer services and resource
enhancement, and provide appropriate recognition to such
partners or investors; and
(5) may assess a fine of not more than $100 for any
violation of the authority to collect fees for admission to the
area or for the use of outdoor recreation sites, facilities,
visitor centers, equipment, and services.
(c)(1) Amounts collected at each fee demonstration area, site or
project shall be distributed as follows:
(A) Of the amount in excess of 104% of the amount collected
in fiscal year 1995, and thereafter annually adjusted upward by
4%, eighty percent to a special account in the Treasury for use
without further appropriation, by the agency which administers
the site, to remain available for expenditures in accordance
with paragraph (2)(A).
(
Of the amount in excess of 104% of the amount collectedin fiscal year 1995, and thereafter annually adjusted upward by
4%, 20 percent to a special account in the Treasury for use
without further appropriation, by the agency which administers
the site, to remain available for expenditure in accordance with
paragraph (2)(
.(C) For agencies other than the Fish and Wildlife Service,
up to 15% of current year collections of each agency, but not
greater than fee collection costs for that fiscal year, to
remain available for expenditure without further appropriation
in accordance with paragraph (2)(C).
(D) For agencies other than the Fish and Wildlife Service,
the balance to the special account established pursuant to
subparagraph (A) of section 4(i)(1) of the Land and Water
Conservation Fund Act, as amended.
(E) For the Fish and Wildlife Service, the balance shall be
distributed in accordance with section 201(c) of the Emergency
Wetlands Resources Act.
(2)(A) Expenditures from site specific special funds shall be for
further activities of the area, site or project from which funds are collected, and shall be accounted for separately.
(
Expenditures from agency specific special funds shall be for use on an agency-wide basis and shall be accounted for separately.(C) Expenditures from the fee collection support fund shall be used to cover fee collection costs in accordance with section 4(i)(1)(
of the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act, as amended: Provided, That funds unexpended and unobligated at the end of the fiscal year shall not be deposited into the special account established pursuant to section 4(i)(1)(A) of said Act and shall remain available for expenditure without further appropriation.(3) In order to increase the quality of the visitor experience at
public recreational areas and enhance the protection of resources, amounts available for expenditure under this section may only be used for the area, site or project concerned, for backlogged repair and maintenance projects (including projects relating to health and safety) and for interpretation, signage, habitat or facility enhancement, resource preservation, annual operation (including fee collection), maintenance, and law enforcement relating to public use. The agencywide accounts may be used for the same purposes set forth in the preceding
sentence, but for areas, sites or projects selected at the discretion of the respective agency head.
(d)(1) Amounts collected under this section shall not be taken into account for the purposes of the Act of May 23, 1908 and the Act of March 1, 1911 (16 U.S.C. 500), the Act of March 4, 1913 (16 U.S.C. 501), the Act of July 22, 1937 (7 U.S.C. 1012), the Act of August 8, 1937 and the Act of May 24, 1939 (43 U.S.C. 1181f et seq.), the Act of June 14, 1926 (43 U.S.C. 869-4), chapter 69 of title 31, United States Code, section 401 of the Act of June 15, 1935 (16 U.S.C. 715s), the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (16 U.S.C. 460l), and any other provision of law relating to revenue allocation.
(2) Fees charged pursuant to this section shall be in lieu of fees charged under any other provision of law.
(e) The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture shall carry out this section without promulgating regulations.
(f) <<NOTE: Effective date. Termination date.>> The authority to collect fees under this section shall commence on October 1, 1995, and end on September 30, 1998. Funds in accounts established shall remain available through September 30, 2001.
Sec. 316. Section 2001(a)(2) of Public Law 104-19 <<NOTE: 16 USC 1611 note.>> is amended as follows: Strike ``September 30, 1997'' and insert in lieu thereof ``December 31, 1996''.
Sec. 317. None of the funds made available in this Act may be used for any program, project, or activity when it is made known to the Federal entity or official to which the funds are made available that the program, project, or activity is not in compliance with any applicable Federal law relating to risk assessment, the protection of private property rights, or unfunded mandates.
Sec. 318. None of the funds provided in this Act may be made
available for the Mississippi River Corridor Heritage Commission.
