Establishing Development Ceilings for All National Park Service Units
AFMD-81-31
Published: Apr 10, 1981. Publicly Released: May 11, 1981.
Skip to Highlights
Highlights
GAO interviewed program, planning, and budget officials at the National Park Service to examine Park Service records relating to development ceilings and compare those records with the legislation cited to ascertain if development ceilings had been exceeded. GAO tried to determine if development ceilings were controlling the development costs of Park Service units. A development ceiling is the total authorization available for development of a particular park unit.
Recommendations
Matter for Congressional Consideration
| Matter | Status | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| If Congress wishes to continue to use ceilings, it should establish them for all units, review them on a cyclical basis, and require proper accounting procedures to make them effective in controlling development costs. Congress could eliminate development ceilings altogether, but this would diminish the control that authorizing committees now exercise. If ceilings are to be continued, the Park Service and Congress should agree upon precise definitions of the type of expenditures to be charged against the ceilings. |
Closed – Not Implemented
|
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information. |
Full Report
Office of Public Affairs
Topics
Accounting proceduresAccounting systemsAppropriationsAuthorizing legislationCost analysisCost controlFinancial managementNational parksExpenditure of fundsData errors