National Park Service Director Chuck Sams told Congress that President Joe Biden's Interior Department ordered him to transfer $200 million in federal funding to a park in Rep. Nancy Pelosi's district, drawing increased scrutiny by House Republicans.
Last week, Sams reportedly told Congress that Interior Department Fish and Wildlife and Parks Assistant Secretary Shannon Estenoz directed Sams to transfer of $200 million to the Presidio Trust, a federal agency that operates the Presidio, a 1,500-acre former military installation used as a public recreation area in Pelosi's district near the Golden Gate Bridge.
In addition to the $200 million for the Presidio, Pelosi's district received $63.6 million from NPA for Alcatraz and $102.3 million for the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park.
The $365.9 million Pelosi's district received from NPS makes up nearly one-quarter of the $1.5 billion Congress allocated to NPA for fiscal year 2023.
Bruce Westerman and Tiffany sent a letter to Estenoz requesting more information on the $200 million transfer.
In addition to other discretionary and mandatory funding sources, the NPS was provided with approximately $1.53 billion this fiscal year, including $1.33 billion through the Great American Outdoors Act and $200 million in the IRA, to address priority deferred maintenance projects across the nation.
Concerningly, nearly 24 percent of that funding went to one Congressional district, represented by former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, including the entire $200 million provided for deferred maintenance in the IRA. The Republican congressmen said Sams' testimony "Raised numerous questions about whether the hundreds of millions of dollars in taxpayer funding transferred to the Presidio in San Francisco will be appropriately utilized for deferred maintenance and repairs."
No comments:
Post a Comment