Senator Daines Questions National Park Service on Safety, Wild Horses, and Cemeteries

Enhancing National Park Safety with Next-Gen 911

• 💡 Senate Bill 290, the "Making National Parks Safer Act," aims to improve emergency response in parks by requiring the development of a plan to install next-generation 911 systems.
• 🎯 This technology will provide better location data and situational awareness for emergency services, largely without impacting the natural beauty or visitor experience.
• 📞 The upgrades are expected to improve responsiveness to emergencies and reports of potential resource damage.

National Cemeteries Access and Operations

• 🏛️ Senate Bill 1858 mandates that the 14 National Cemeteries administered by the Park Service remain open on federal holidays.
• ✅ The National Park Service's policy is to maintain these sacred sites as places of remembrance with access designed to support visitation throughout the year, including holidays.
• 🇺🇸 This ensures families and friends can visit loved ones and allow for patriotic activities like Wreaths Across America on important remembrance days.

Marsh Billings Rockefeller National Historic Park Expansion

• 🏞️ Senate Bill 416 directs the Park Service to expand the Marsh Billings Rockefeller National Historic Park in Vermont to include the King Farm.
• ❓ While Senator Daines highlighted the historical connection of Frederick Billings to Billings, Montana, the Associate Director was not prepared to answer specifics on the expansion.
• 🏢 The department's general position is to focus on maintaining the existing portfolio of national park sites with current resources.

Wild Horse Management in Theodore Roosevelt National Park

• 🐎 Senate Bill 1377, the "Theodore Roosevelt National Park Wild Horses Protection Act," requires the park service to maintain a genetically diverse herd of wild horses.
• 📊 The bill sets a minimum population of 150 horses and requires a cost-effective management plan, objective benchmarks, and formalized monitoring.
• 🤝 The legislation provides explicit congressional guidance and clearer parameters for managing wild horses while ensuring consistency with protecting the park's natural resources and working with local stakeholders.