Yosemite National Park Equal Access and Fairness Act
H.R. 177, the Yosemite National Park Equal Access and Fairness Act, would expand public recreational access to the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and Lake Eleanor Basin areas by amending the 1913 Act that established those resources. It increases the financial authority available to the grantee (historically the City and County of San Francisco’s water-power system) for improving access and safety, ties that funding to annual CPI adjustments, and prohibits recouping those funds from wholesale water or power customers. The bill also adds a new provision directing the Interior Department, through the National Park Service, to permit a defined set of recreational activities (swimming, non-motorized watercraft, camping above ordinary high-water marks, picnicking, and other appropriate activities) and to allow vehicle use on access roads if it won’t harm dam facilities. A one-year mandatory report to Congress would analyze alignment with the original access intent and explore funding/revenue mechanisms to ensure equitable access, including possible adjustments to water/power pricing, concession arrangements with San Francisco, and modifying annual rental fees to reflect the value of recreational and flood-control benefits.
Key Points
- 1Funding expansion and CPI adjustment: The cap in section 7 increases from $30,000 to $2,000,000 and is adjusted annually for changes in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers.
- 2Use of funds and recoupment prohibition: The grantee may not recoup these sums from wholesale water or power customers.
- 3Added recreation authorization: New Section 12 authorizes public recreation in the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and Lake Eleanor Basin areas, including swimming, non-motorized watercraft, camping above the high-water marks, picnicking, and other activities the Secretary deems appropriate, subject to necessary limitations and regulations.
- 4Access via roads: Vehicle use on access roads is allowed to reach recreation sites if it does not negatively affect the operation or maintenance of any dam-related facility.
- 5Reporting requirement: Within one year, a report to Congress analyzing (a) whether the original 1913 Act’s access intent has been followed, and (b) revenue/ funding strategies to provide equitable access, including trail/road maintenance, wildfire prevention, water/power price adjustments, concession arrangements with San Francisco, and adjusting annual rental fees to reflect the value of lost benefits (e.g., recreational activities and flood control).