National Park Service: Condition of and Need for Employee Housing
RCED-93-192
Published: Sep 30, 1993. Publicly Released: Nov 01, 1993.
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Highlights
Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the National Park Service's employee housing program, focusing on the: (1) condition of employee housing; (2) Park Service's justification for providing employee housing; and (3) accuracy of the backlog estimate for housing repairs and replacement.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of the Interior | The Secretary of the Interior should direct the Director of the Park Service to: (1) reassess the need for all permanent housing units, especially those justified on the basis of nonavailability or unaffordability in nonisolated areas; and (2) develop a strategy to eliminate from the housing inventory those units not needed. |
In response to an August 1994 report on Park Service employee housing, NPS stated that it is considering together the recommendations in both GAO reports on employee housing (RCED-93-192 and RCED-94-284). As such, NPS is currently planning a park-by-park review of housing needs and is assembling a task force under the direction of the Secretary's Chief of Staff to review all facets of the Park Service's employee housing program. Because the recommendation in this report (RCED-93-192) and an August 1994 report (RCED-94-284) are so similar GAO is combining them for follow-up purposes. (See RCED-94-284.)
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| Department of the Interior | The Secretary of the Interior should direct the Director of the Park Service to develop a repair and replacement estimate that can be supported for those units that are needed. One method of supporting the estimate would be to use historical repair and replacement costs. |
In response to an August 1994 report on Park Service employee housing, NPS stated that it is considering together the recommendations in both GAO reports on employee housing (RCED-93-192 and RCED-94-284). As such, NPS is currently planning a park-by-park review of housing needs and is assembling a task force under the direction of the Secretary's Chief of Staff to review all facets of the Park Service's employee housing program. Because the recommendation in this report (RCED-93-192) and an August 1994 report (RCED-94-284) are so similar GAO is combining them for follow-up purposes. (See RCED-94-284.)
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| Department of the Interior | The Secretary of the Interior should direct the Director of the Park Service to develop a strategy for closing the gap between rental income and maintenance costs. As part of this strategy, the Park Service needs to reassess the administrative adjustments to rental rates and analyze the impact on employees of eliminating or increasing the rental rate limitation. If the Park Service concludes that the rental rate increase limitation should be changed, the rationale for the change should be communicated to the appropriate congressional committees. |
In response to an August 1994 report on Park Service employee housing, NPS stated that it is considering together the recommendations in both GAO reports on employee housing (RCED-93-192 and RCED-94-284). As such, NPS is currently planning a park-by-park review of housing needs and is assembling a task force under the direction of the Secretary's Chief of Staff to review all facets of the Park Service's employee housing program. Because the recommendation in this report (RCED-93-192) and an August 1994 report (RCED-94-284) are so similar GAO is combining them for follow-up purposes. (See RCED-94-284.)
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Topics
Appropriated fundsCost analysisFederal employeesHousing programsHousing repairsMaintenance (upkeep)National historic sitesNational parksRental ratesRepair costs