As ordered reported by the House Committee on Natural Resources on January 28, 2014
H.R. 3492 would nullify, within three years of the bill’s enactment, existing regulations prohibiting hand-propelled vessels on streams and rivers in the Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks in the states of Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. The legislation also would direct the Fish and Wildlife Service to coordinate the use of hand-propelled vessels on the Gros Ventre River within the National Elk Refuge in Wyoming. Under existing regulations, the National Park Service (NPS) has prohibited boating on five of the 168 lakes in Yellowstone National Park and a 1,000-foot section of the Snake River in Grand Teton National Park.
Based on information provided by the Department of the Interior, CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 3492 would cost about $4 million over the 2014-2019 period, subject to the availability of appropriated funds. In the absence of existing regulations, NPS would need to promulgate new regulations concerning the affected streams and rivers and conduct environmental and feasibility studies. Additionally, NPS operating costs would increase to manage boating on the streams and rivers opened by the legislation. Enacting H.R. 3492 would not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.
H.R. 3492 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
