FY 2001 Budget and Annual Performance Plan for Grand Canyon National Park are Available for Public Review

Joseph Alston Park Superintendent at Grand Canyon National Park today announced that the park's annual performance plan and documents providing details about the appropriated budget and fee revenues for FY 2001 are available for public review as required by the National Parks Omnibus Management Act of 1998.

Highlights of the park's budget, which funds specific goals in the annual performance plan, include:

$1,499,900 for resource preservation and management will assist in addressing management of cultural and natural resources, continuation of the cultural liaison program with nearby tribes, maintenance and management of our museum collection, and research and science programs. $807,000 in estimated fee revenues retained by the park will address restoration of backcountry sites, park planning, pruning and removal of hazardous trees within the park's developed areas, monitoring sensitive water resources, and preparing a historic structures report for several buildings on the National Register of Historic Places.

$9,068,800 to address visitor services is for visitor center operations and ranger programs, environmental education, law enforcement and protection services, search and rescue and emergency medical services and fire management. It also provides support for the visitor transit system and concessions management. $654,000 in estimated fee revenues will be used to fund the continuation of the Preventative Search and Rescue Program, to develop interpretive panels to explain the effects of the North Rim fires, to fund new signs and bus stops for the park shuttle bus system, and to support the operation of the river patrol program.

$5,172,300 for facility operations and maintenance supports buildings, utilities, sanitation, water and wastewater activities, maintenance and signage on roads, trails and grounds, and assists with maintenance related support to resource preservation. $450,000 in estimated fee revenues will be used to implement an Integrated Pest Management Program and to perform the repairs and modifications needed to exclude pests and rodents from structures on the South Rim, North Rim, and at Desert View.

$2,488,000 for park administration funds the Superintendent, Park Management and administrative activities, and includes the General Management Plan Implementation Team. $2,496,900 of estimated fee revenues will be used to fund the operation and staffing of all the park entrance stations, backcountry permit office, and the management of the fee collection program.

$19,271,000 of estimated fee revenues will be used to pay for continued work at Canyon View Information Plaza, a new South Rim Maintenance and Warehouse Facility, repairs to the Shrine of the Ages - the park's main auditorium, improvements to the Desert View Water System, and construction planning for numerous other projects throughout the park.

A copy of Grand Canyon National Park's complete annual performance plan, prepared in accordance with the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA), is available by writing to Grand Canyon National Park, P.O. Box 129, Grand Canyon, Arizona 86023.

The goals described in the park's annual performance plan are derived from the 2000 NPS Strategic Plan, which establishes a performance management process for the Service and incorporates the requirements of GPRA. The Strategic Plan is available on the NPS home page at www.nps.gov/.