II 

Calendar No. 644 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5125 

To provide for certain improvements to the housing and workforce programs 

of Federal land management agencies, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 19, 2024 

Mr. BARRASSO (for himself, Mr. KING, and Mr. DAINES) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

NOVEMBER 21, 2024 

Reported by Mr. MANCHIN, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To provide for certain improvements to the housing and 

workforce programs of Federal land management agencies, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Land Manager Housing and Workforce Improvement Act 

6 of 2024’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

TITLE I—EXPANDING AUTHORITY 

Sec. 101. Prioritizing National Park Service workforce housing. 

Sec. 102. Authorizing the National Park Service to address workforce housing 

off-park. 

Sec. 103. Expanding National Park Service rental options. 

Sec. 104. Leveraging National Park Service rental receipts for workforce housing programming. 

Sec. 105. Empowering the Forest Service to address workforce housing needs. 

TITLE II—EXPANDING PARTNERSHIP CAPACITY 

Sec. 201. Engaging partners to address National Park Service workforce housing. 

Sec. 202. Leveraging philanthropic support to address National Park Service 

workforce housing. 

TITLE III—SUPPORTING WORKFORCE 

Sec. 301. Supporting the permanent land manager workforce. 

Sec. 302. Supporting the seasonal National Park Service workforce. 

TITLE IV—REPORTS AND OVERSIGHT 

Sec. 401. Quantifying the workforce housing needs of land managers. 

Sec. 402. Conducting oversight on the housing programming of land managers. 

Sec. 403. Justifying emergency spending. 

3 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this Act: 

5 (1) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CON6 GRESS.—The term ‘‘appropriate committees of Con7 gress’’ means— 

8 (A) the Committee on Energy and Natural 

9 Resources of the Senate; 

10 (B) the Committee on Agriculture, Nutri11 tion, and Forestry of the Senate; 


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1 (C) the Committee on Appropriations of 

2 the Senate; 

3 (D) the Committee on Natural Resources 

4 of the House of Representatives; 

5 (E) the Committee on Agriculture of the 

6 House of Representatives; and 

7 (F) the Committee on Appropriations of 

8 the House of Representatives. 

9 (2) COVERED AGENCIES.—The term ‘‘covered 

10 agencies’’ means— 

11 (A) the National Park Service; 

12 (B) the Bureau of Land Management; 

13 (C) the United States Fish and Wildlife 

14 Service; and 

15 (D) the Forest Service. 

16 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

17 the Secretary of the Interior. 

18 TITLE I—EXPANDING 

19 AUTHORITY 

20 SEC. 101. PRIORITIZING NATIONAL PARK SERVICE WORK21 FORCE HOUSING. 

22 Section 103502(a)(3) of title 54, United States Code, 

23 is amended— 

24 (1) by inserting ‘‘quarters for field employees 

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1 cluding related infrastructure and amenities),’’ after 

2 ‘‘prioritize’’; and 

3 (2) by inserting a comma after ‘‘facilities’’. 

4 SEC. 102. AUTHORIZING THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE TO 

5 ADDRESS WORKFORCE HOUSING OFF-PARK. 

6 Section 100901 of title 54, United States Code, is 

7 amended by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(i) ACQUISITION OF LAND FOR ADMINISTRATION OF

9 SYSTEM UNITS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 

11 103501(c)(2) or any other provision of law (includ12 ing regulations), to facilitate the administration of a 

13 System unit, the Secretary may acquire, by purchase 

14 from a willing seller, donation, exchange, or transfer 

15 from another Federal agency, not more than 10 

16 acres of land or interests in land, cumulatively, not 

17 more than a 1-hour driving commute (under normal 

18 commuting conditions) outside the System unit 

19 boundary for the development, construction, rehabili20 tation, maintenance, operation, or management of 

21 quarters for field employees (as those terms are de22 fined in section 101331) (including related infra23 structure and amenities) for the System unit. 

24 ‘‘(2) DISPOSAL.—If the Secretary determines 

25 that any land or interest in land acquired under 


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1 paragraph (1) no longer supports the administration 

2 of the System unit— 

3 ‘‘(A) the Secretary may determine the land 

4 and any improvements to the land to be excess 

5 property for disposal; and 

6 ‘‘(B) the proceeds from the disposal of ex7 cess property under subparagraph (A) shall be 

8 retained by the Secretary and deposited in the 

9 special fund established for the development, 

10 construction, rehabilitation, or management of 

11 quarters for field employees (as so defined) (in12 cluding related infrastructure and amenities) 

13 under section 101338(b), to be expended by the 

14 Secretary without further appropriation.’’. 

15 SEC. 103. EXPANDING NATIONAL PARK SERVICE RENTAL 

16 OPTIONS. 

17 Section 101336 of title 54, United States Code, is 

18 amended, in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘management, 

19 repair, and maintenance of field employee quarters’’ and 

20 inserting ‘‘occupancy, development, construction, repair, 

21 maintenance, rehabilitation, or management of quarters 

22 for field employees (including related infrastructure and 

23 amenities)’’. 


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1 SEC. 104. LEVERAGING NATIONAL PARK SERVICE RENTAL 

2 RECEIPTS FOR WORKFORCE HOUSING PRO3 GRAMMING. 

4 Section 101338(b) of title 54, United States Code, 

5 is amended by striking ‘‘maintenance and operation of 

6 quarters’’ and inserting ‘‘development, construction, reha7 bilitation, or management of quarters for field employees 

8 (including related infrastructure and amenities)’’. 

9 SEC. 105. EMPOWERING THE FOREST SERVICE TO ADDRESS 

10 WORKFORCE HOUSING NEEDS. 

11 (a) USE OF FOREST SERVICE STRUCTURES OR IM12 PROVEMENTS.—Section 7 of the Act of April 24, 1950 

13 (commonly known as the ‘‘Granger-Thye Act’’) (64 Stat. 

14 84, chapter 97; 16 U.S.C. 580d), is amended by striking 

15 ‘‘thirty years as determined by him’’ and inserting ‘‘30 

16 years, or in the case of a permit for workforce housing 

17 and related infrastructure (including amenities), any dura18 tion, as determined to be appropriate by the Secretary of 

19 Agriculture’’. 

20 (b) CONVEYANCES OF FOREST SERVICE ADMINIS21 TRATIVE SITES.—Title V of the Forest Service Facility 

22 Realignment and Enhancement Act of 2005 (16 U.S.C. 

23 580d note; Public Law 109–54) is amended— 

24 (1) in section 503— 

25 (A) by striking subsection (f); and 


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1 (B) by redesignating subsection (g) as sub2 section (f); 

3 (2) in section 504— 

4 (A) in subsection (b)(2)(A), by inserting 

5 ‘‘or over time’’ after ‘‘conveyance of the admin6 istrative site’’; 

7 (B) in subsection (c)(2), by striking ‘‘by 

8 competitive sale’’ and inserting ‘‘through com9 petition’’; and 

10 (C) in subsection (d), by adding at the end 

11 the following: 

12 ‘‘(5) EXEMPTION FROM INFORMATION COLLEC13 TION REQUIREMENTS.—Subchapter I of chapter 35 

14 of title 44, United States Code, shall not apply to 

15 instruments used to convey administrative sites 

16 under this title. 

17 ‘‘(6) FORECLOSURE.—After a reasonable period 

18 of time for removal and under conditions for cause 

19 considered to be appropriate by the Secretary, a fa20 cility or improvement on an administrative site re21 maining after the termination of a conveyance under 

22 this title shall be conveyed to the United States 

23 without consideration.’’; and 

24 (3) in section 505(b)— 


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1 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

2 the end; 

3 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking the pe4 riod at the end and inserting a semicolon; and 

5 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(3) the acquisition of land or any interests in 

7 land (with or without improvements) for purposes of 

8 administration of the National Forest System, in9 cluding the construction of Federal employee and 

10 private housing; and 

11 ‘‘(4) the reacquisition by the Secretary of an 

12 administrative site, a purchase agreement, or an op13 tion to buy land with or without improvements con14 veyed under this title.’’. 

15 TITLE II—EXPANDING 

16 PARTNERSHIP CAPACITY 

17 SEC. 201. ENGAGING PARTNERS TO ADDRESS NATIONAL 

18 PARK SERVICE WORKFORCE HOUSING. 

19 Section 101701(a) of title 54, United States Code, 

20 is amended— 

21 (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting, ‘‘, including 

22 projects for field employee quarters (as those terms 

23 are defined in section 101331),’’ after ‘‘responsibil24 ities of the Secretary.’’; and 

25 (2) in paragraph (2)— 


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1 (A) by inserting ‘‘, Tribal,’’ after ‘‘State’’; 

2 (B) by inserting ‘‘(including an organiza3 tion that has a philanthropic agreement to 

4 fundraise or otherwise generate donations on 

5 behalf of, or for the benefit of, a Federal agen6 cy)’’ after ‘‘organization’’; and 

7 (C) by inserting ‘‘(including an individual 

8 that has a philanthropic agreement to fundraise 

9 or otherwise generate donations on behalf of, or 

10 for the benefit of, a Federal agency)’’ after ‘‘in11 dividual’’. 

12 SEC. 202. LEVERAGING PHILANTHROPIC SUPPORT TO AD13 DRESS NATIONAL PARK SERVICE WORK14 FORCE HOUSING. 

15 Section 103501(c)(3) of title 54, United States Code, 

16 is amended by inserting ‘‘, services,’’ after ‘‘goods’’. 

17 TITLE III—SUPPORTING 

18 WORKFORCE 

19 SEC. 301. SUPPORTING THE PERMANENT LAND MANAGER 

20 WORKFORCE. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary or the Secretary of 

22 Agriculture, as applicable, may recruit and directly ap23 point qualified individuals into the competitive service who 

24 are certified, in accordance with procedures established by 

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1 ble, as maintaining a permanent and exclusive residence 

2 within, contiguous to, or not more than a 1-hour driving 

3 commute (under normal commuting conditions) from a 

4 site administered by the National Park Service, United 

5 States Fish and Wildlife Service, or Forest Service to 

6 which the individual would report to work into any posi7 tion at or below grade GS–11 of the General Schedule, 

8 WG–15 of the Federal Wage System, or equivalent within 

9 the applicable site. 

10 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—In exercising the authority 

11 provided under subsection (a), the Secretary or the Sec12 retary of Agriculture, as applicable, shall ensure that any 

13 action taken by the Secretary or the Secretary of Agri14 culture, as applicable— 

15 (1) is consistent with the merit principles of 

16 section 2301 of title 5, United States Code; 

17 (2) complies with the public notice requirements 

18 of section 3327 of that title; and 

19 (3) is based on a determination by the Sec20 retary or Secretary of Agriculture, as applicable, 

21 that there is a need for workforce housing that can22 not be supplied by the Federal Government. 

23 (c) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.—The authority 

24 provided under subsection (a) shall terminate on Sep25 tember 30, 2030. 


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1 SEC. 302. SUPPORTING THE SEASONAL NATIONAL PARK 

2 SERVICE WORKFORCE. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi4 sion of law, for purposes of determining the noncompeti5 tive rehire eligibility of temporary seasonal employees of 

6 the National Park Service— 

7 (1) the Secretary shall establish a definition of 

8 what constitutes a major subdivision of the National 

9 Park Service; and 

10 (2) any requirement that a position be in the 

11 same local commuting area shall not apply. 

12 (b) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.—The authority 

13 provided under subsection (a) shall terminate on Sep14 tember 30, 2030. 

15 TITLE IV—REPORTS AND 

16 OVERSIGHT 

17 SEC. 401. QUANTIFYING THE WORKFORCE HOUSING NEEDS 

18 OF LAND MANAGERS. 

19 Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment 

20 of this Act, the Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture 

21 shall jointly submit to the appropriate committees of Con22 gress a needs assessment report that describes, with re23 spect to housing the workforce of covered agencies, as ap24 plicable— 

25 (1) housing unit types and utilization; 


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1 (2) year-round, seasonal, and required occu2 pancy rates; 

3 (3) alternatives to onsite housing; 

4 (4) local rental market availability and afford5 ability; 

6 (5) local housing market trends; and 

7 (6) housing needs by position type. 

8 SEC. 402. CONDUCTING OVERSIGHT ON THE HOUSING PRO9 GRAMMING OF LAND MANAGERS. 

10 (a) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 18 

11 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comp12 troller General of the United States shall submit to the 

13 appropriate committees of Congress a report that— 

14 (1) assesses, in consultation with the National 

15 Housing Council described in Office of Management 

16 and Budget Circular A–45, the effect of Office of 

17 Management and Budget Circular A–45R on the 

18 housing of the workforce of covered agencies; 

19 (2) assesses the effect of Office of Management 

20 and Budget Circular A–11 on the housing of the 

21 workforce of covered agencies; 

22 (3) assesses the effect of department-level guid23 ance on the housing of the workforce of covered 

24 agencies; 


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1 (4) assesses the effect of agency-level guidance 

2 on the housing of the workforce of covered agencies; 

3 and 

4 (5) identifies suggested administrative actions 

5 and legislative proposals to reform the guidance as6 sessed under paragraphs (1) through (4), includ7 ing— 

8 (A) improvements to tenant experience; 

9 (B) improvements to workforce housing 

10 supply, including— 

11 (i) housing managed by the covered 

12 agencies; and 

13 (ii) leased private market housing; 

14 (C) improvements to financing options; 

15 (D) improvements to public-private part16 nerships; 

17 (E) improvements to philanthropic engage18 ment; and 

19 (F) improvements to commuting times to 

20 report stations, including— 

21 (i) available housing in the gateway 

22 communities; 

23 (ii) available housing in the nearest 

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1 fice of Management and Budget Circular 

2 A–45); 

3 (iii) discrepancies in Office of Man4 agement and Budget, Department of the 

5 Interior, and National Park Service defini6 tions for reasonable commuting time; and 

7 (iv) differences between normal com8 muting conditions and peak-commute traf9 fic conditions, including considerations 

10 for— 

11 (I) road quality and condition; 

12 (II) availability of public trans13 portation; 

14 (III) winter driving; and 

15 (IV) visitor traffic. 

16 (b) IMPLEMENTATION.—Not later than 1 year after 

17 the date on which the report is submitted under subsection 

18 (a), the heads of the covered agencies shall carry out the 

19 administrative actions identified under paragraph (5) of 

20 that subsection. 

21 SEC. 403. JUSTIFYING EMERGENCY SPENDING. 

22 Section 5 of the Act of August 3, 1956 (70 Stat. 

23 1033, chapter 950; 7 U.S.C. 2228), is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking the section designation and all 

2 that follows through ‘‘The Department’’ and insert3 ing the following: 

4 ‘‘SEC. 5. EMERGENCY SUBSISTENCE FOR EMPLOYEES. 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Department’’; and 

6 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(b) REQUIRED NOTICE FOR FOREST SERVICE EM8 PLOYEES.—Not less than 30 days before the date on 

9 which the Secretary of Agriculture exercises the authority 

10 under subsection (a) with respect to Forest Service em11 ployees, the Secretary of Agriculture shall submit to the 

12 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Sen13 ate, the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and For14 estry of the Senate, the Committee on Natural Resources 

15 of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on 

16 Agriculture of the House of Representatives notice pro17 viding— 

18 ‘‘(1) 1 or more justifications for the use of the 

19 authority; 

20 ‘‘(2) the estimated cost of using the authority, 

21 as verified by the Director of the Congressional 

22 Budget Office; and 

23 ‘‘(3) the name of the office within the Forest 

24 Service employing the individuals that would be pro25 vided subsistence payments. 


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1 ‘‘(c) REPORT.—Not later than 30 days after the date 

2 on which the Secretary of Agriculture exercises the au3 thority under subsection (a) with respect to Forest Service 

4 employees, the Secretary of Agriculture shall submit to the 

5 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Sen6 ate, the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and For7 estry of the Senate, the Committee on Natural Resources 

8 of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on 

9 Agriculture of the House of Representatives a report pro10 viding the number and grade level of the General Schedule 

11 of Forest Service employees to be provided subsistence 

12 payments.’’. 

13 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

14 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

15 ‘‘Land Manager Housing and Workforce Improvement Act 

16 of 2024’’. 

17 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

18 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

TITLE I—EXPANDING AUTHORITY 

Sec. 101. Prioritizing National Park Service workforce housing. 

Sec. 102. Authorizing the National Park Service to address workforce housing offpark. 

Sec. 103. Expanding National Park Service rental options. 

Sec. 104. Leveraging National Park Service rental receipts for workforce housing 

programming. 

Sec. 105. Empowering the Forest Service to address workforce housing needs. 

TITLE II—EXPANDING PARTNERSHIP CAPACITY 

Sec. 201. Engaging partners to address National Park Service workforce housing. 

Sec. 202. Encouraging public-private cooperative management. 


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Sec. 203. Leveraging philanthropic support to address National Park Service 

workforce housing. 

TITLE III—SUPPORTING WORKFORCE 

Sec. 301. Supporting the land manager workforce. 

Sec. 302. Supporting the seasonal National Park Service workforce. 

TITLE IV—REPORTS AND OVERSIGHT 

Sec. 401. Quantifying the workforce housing needs of land managers. 

Sec. 402. Conducting oversight on the housing programming of land managers. 

Sec. 403. Justifying emergency spending. 

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS.— 

4 The term ‘‘appropriate committees of Congress’’ 

5 means— 

6 (A) the Committee on Energy and Natural 

7 Resources of the Senate; 

8 (B) the Committee on Agriculture, Nutri9 tion, and Forestry of the Senate; 

10 (C) the Committee on Appropriations of the 

11 Senate; 

12 (D) the Committee on Natural Resources of 

13 the House of Representatives; 

14 (E) the Committee on Agriculture of the 

15 House of Representatives; and 

16 (F) the Committee on Appropriations of the 

17 House of Representatives. 

18 (2) COVERED AGENCIES.—The term ‘‘covered 

19 agencies’’ means— 

20 (A) the National Park Service; 


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1 (B) the Bureau of Land Management; 

2 (C) the United States Fish and Wildlife 

3 Service; and 

4 (D) the Forest Service. 

5 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

6 the Secretary of the Interior. 

7 TITLE I—EXPANDING 

8 AUTHORITY 

9 SEC. 101. PRIORITIZING NATIONAL PARK SERVICE WORK10 FORCE HOUSING. 

11 Section 103502(a)(3) of title 54, United States Code, 

12 is amended— 

13 (1) by inserting ‘‘quarters for field employees (as 

14 those terms are defined in section 101331),’’ after 

15 ‘‘prioritize’’; and 

16 (2) by inserting a comma after ‘‘facilities’’. 

17 SEC. 102. AUTHORIZING THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE TO 

18 ADDRESS WORKFORCE HOUSING OFF-PARK. 

19 Section 100901 of title 54, United States Code, is 

20 amended by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(i) ACQUISITION OF LAND FOR ADMINISTRATION OF

22 SYSTEM UNITS.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To facilitate the administra24 tion of a System unit, the Secretary may acquire, by 

25 donation, exchange, or transfer from another Federal 


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1 agency, not more than 20 acres of land or interests 

2 in land, cumulatively, within the vicinity of the Sys3 tem unit boundary for the development, construction, 

4 maintenance, or operation of quarters for field em5 ployees (as those terms are defined in section 101331) 

6 for the System unit. 

7 ‘‘(2) MANAGEMENT.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—With respect to any 

9 land or interest in land acquired by the Sec10 retary under paragraph (1)— 

11 ‘‘(i) the land or interest in land shall 

12 not— 

13 ‘‘(I) be administered as part of 

14 the System; or 

15 ‘‘(II) be subject to the laws (in16 cluding regulations) governing the as17 sociated System unit; but 

18 ‘‘(ii) the Secretary shall— 

19 ‘‘(I) have the authority to super20 vise, manage, and control the land; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(II) issue such rules and regula23 tions as the Secretary may determine 

24 to be necessary and proper for the use 

25 and management of the land. 


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1 ‘‘(B) AUTHORIZATIONS.—The Secretary 

2 may grant exclusive privileges, leases, and per3 mits for the use of land acquired under para4 graph (1) and enter into contracts relating to 

5 such authorizations as authorized under this 

6 title, notwithstanding any restriction on such 

7 authorizations to land within a System unit 

8 boundary. 

9 ‘‘(3) DISPOSAL.—If the Secretary determines 

10 that any land or interest in land acquired under 

11 paragraph (1) no longer supports the administration 

12 of the System unit— 

13 ‘‘(A) the Secretary may determine the land 

14 and any improvements to the land to be excess 

15 property for disposal; and 

16 ‘‘(B) the proceeds from the disposal of excess 

17 property under subparagraph (A) shall be re18 tained by the Secretary and deposited in the spe19 cial fund established for the development, con20 struction, maintenance, or operation of quarters 

21 for field employees (as so defined) described in 

22 section 101338(b), to be expended by the Sec23 retary without further appropriation.’’. 


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1 SEC. 103. EXPANDING NATIONAL PARK SERVICE RENTAL 

2 OPTIONS. 

3 Section 101336 of title 54, United States Code, is 

4 amended, in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘management, 

5 repair, and maintenance of field employee quarters’’ and 

6 inserting ‘‘development, construction, maintenance, or oper7 ation of quarters for field employees’’. 

8 SEC. 104. LEVERAGING NATIONAL PARK SERVICE RENTAL 

9 RECEIPTS FOR WORKFORCE HOUSING PRO10 GRAMMING. 

11 Section 101338 of title 54, United States Code, is 

12 amended by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(c) USE OF SPECIAL FUND BY NATIONAL PARK SERV14 ICE.—Amounts deposited by the Service in the special fund 

15 described in subsection (b) and established under section 

16 320 of Public Law 98–473 (5 U.S.C. 5911 note) shall be 

17 available for the development, construction, maintenance, or 

18 operation of quarters for field employees at System units.’’. 

19 SEC. 105. EMPOWERING THE FOREST SERVICE TO ADDRESS 

20 WORKFORCE HOUSING NEEDS. 

21 (a) USE OF FOREST SERVICE STRUCTURES OR IM22 PROVEMENTS.—Section 7 of the Act of April 24, 1950 (com23 monly known as the ‘‘Granger-Thye Act’’) (64 Stat. 84, 

24 chapter 97; 16 U.S.C. 580d), is amended by striking ‘‘thirty 

25 years as determined by him’’ and inserting ‘‘30 years, or 

26 in the case of a permit for workforce housing and related 


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1 infrastructure, 50 years, as determined to be appropriate 

2 by the Secretary of Agriculture’’. 

3 (b) CONVEYANCES OF FOREST SERVICE ADMINISTRA4 TIVE SITES.—Title V of the Forest Service Facility Re5 alignment and Enhancement Act of 2005 (16 U.S.C. 580d 

6 note; Public Law 109–54) is amended— 

7 (1) in section 503— 

8 (A) by striking subsection (f); and 

9 (B) by redesignating subsection (g) as sub10 section (f); and 

11 (2) in section 504(c)(2), by striking ‘‘by competi12 tive sale’’ and inserting ‘‘by soliciting not fewer than 

13 2 competitive bids’’. 

14 TITLE II—EXPANDING 

15 PARTNERSHIP CAPACITY 

16 SEC. 201. ENGAGING PARTNERS TO ADDRESS NATIONAL 

17 PARK SERVICE WORKFORCE HOUSING. 

18 Section 101701(a) of title 54, United States Code, is 

19 amended— 

20 (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting, ‘‘, including 

21 projects for quarters for field employees (as those 

22 terms are defined in section 101331),’’ after ‘‘respon23 sibilities of the Secretary’’; and 

24 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

25 (A) by inserting ‘‘, Tribal,’’ after ‘‘State’’; 


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1 (B) by inserting ‘‘(including an organiza2 tion that has a philanthropic agreement to 

3 fundraise or otherwise generate donations on be4 half of, or for the benefit of, the Service)’’ after 

5 ‘‘organization’’; and 

6 (C) by inserting ‘‘(including an individual 

7 that has a philanthropic agreement to fundraise 

8 or otherwise generate donations on behalf of, or 

9 for the benefit of, the Service)’’ after ‘‘indi10 vidual’’. 

11 SEC. 202. ENCOURAGING PUBLIC-PRIVATE COOPERATIVE 

12 MANAGEMENT. 

13 Section 101703 of title 54, United States Code, is 

14 amended to read as follows: 

15 ‘‘§ 101703. Cooperative management agreements 

16 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF STATE.—In this section, the term 

17 ‘State’ means each of the several States, the District of Co18 lumbia, and each territory of the United States. 

19 ‘‘(b) COOPERATIVE MANAGEMENT AGREEMENTS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in accordance 

21 with the laws generally applicable to System units 

22 and under such terms and conditions as the Secretary 

23 considers appropriate, may enter into a cooperative 

24 management agreement with a State, Indian Tribe, 

25 or local government with park land adjacent to a 


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1 System unit, if the agreement would provide for more 

2 effective and efficient management of a System unit 

3 and the adjacent non-Federal park land. 

4 ‘‘(2) NO TRANSFER OF ADMINISTRATIVE RESPON5 SIBILITIES.—The Secretary may not transfer admin6 istration responsibilities for any System unit under 

7 this subsection. 

8 ‘‘(c) PROVISION OF GOODS AND SERVICES.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may provide 

10 or acquire goods and services on a reimbursable basis 

11 as part of a cooperative management agreement en12 tered into under subsection (b). 

13 ‘‘(2) RETENTION OF FUNDS.—The Secretary may 

14 retain and expend any funds received under this sec15 tion without further appropriation. 

16 ‘‘(d) CO-LOCATION.—The Secretary and a State, In17 dian Tribe, or local government may co-locate in offices or 

18 facilities owned or leased by either party as part of a coop19 erative management agreement entered into under sub20 section (b). 

21 ‘‘(e) EMPLOYEES.— 

22 ‘‘(1) ASSIGNMENT OF EMPLOYEE.—The Secretary 

23 may arrange an assignment under section 3372 of 

24 title 5 of a Federal employee or an employee of a 

25 State, Indian Tribe, or local government, as mutually 


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1 agreed on, for work, on the applicable Federal, State, 

2 local, or Tribal park land covered by the cooperative 

3 management agreement. 

4 ‘‘(2) EXTENSION OF ASSIGNMENT.—An assign5 ment under paragraph (1) may be extended if the 

6 Secretary and the State, Indian Tribe, or local gov7 ernment determine the extension to be mutually bene8 ficial.’’. 

9 SEC. 203. LEVERAGING PHILANTHROPIC SUPPORT TO AD10 DRESS NATIONAL PARK SERVICE WORK11 FORCE HOUSING. 

12 Section 103501(c)(3) of title 54, United States Code, 

13 is amended by striking ‘‘(including funds and fairly valued 

14 durable goods and materials)’’ and inserting ‘‘(including 

15 any combination of cash, fairly valued services, and durable 

16 goods and materials)’’. 

17 TITLE III—SUPPORTING 

18 WORKFORCE 

19 SEC. 301. SUPPORTING THE LAND MANAGER WORKFORCE. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary or the Secretary of 

21 Agriculture, as applicable, may recruit and directly ap22 point qualified individuals into the competitive service who 

23 are certified, in accordance with procedures established by 

24 the Secretary or the Secretary of Agriculture, as applicable, 

25 as maintaining a permanent and exclusive residence within 


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1 the vicinity of a site administered by the National Park 

2 Service, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, or the 

3 Forest Service to a field unit which the individual would 

4 report to work into any position at or below grade GS– 

5 9 of the General Schedule, WG–15 of the Federal Wage Sys6 tem, or equivalent within the applicable field unit. 

7 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—An appointment by the Sec8 retary under subsection (a) shall be considered compliant 

9 with all applicable provisions of chapter 33 of title 5, 

10 United States Code, if the Secretary ensures that the ap11 pointment action— 

12 (1) is consistent with the merit principles of sec13 tion 2301 of that title; and 

14 (2) complies with the public notice requirements 

15 of section 3327 of that title. 

16 (c) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.—The authority pro17 vided under subsection (a) shall terminate on September 30, 

18 2030. 

19 SEC. 302. SUPPORTING THE SEASONAL NATIONAL PARK 

20 SERVICE WORKFORCE. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi22 sion of law, for purposes of determining the noncompetitive 

23 rehire eligibility of temporary seasonal employees of the Na24 tional Park Service— 


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1 (1) the Secretary shall establish a definition of 

2 what constitutes a major subdivision of the National 

3 Park Service; and 

4 (2) any requirement that a position be in the 

5 same local commuting area shall not apply. 

6 (b) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.—The authority pro7 vided under subsection (a) shall terminate on September 30, 

8 2030. 

9 TITLE IV—REPORTS AND 

10 OVERSIGHT 

11 SEC. 401. QUANTIFYING THE WORKFORCE HOUSING NEEDS 

12 OF LAND MANAGERS. 

13 Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment 

14 of this Act, the Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture 

15 shall jointly submit to the appropriate committees of Con16 gress a needs assessment report that provides, with respect 

17 to housing the workforce of covered agencies, as applicable— 

18 (1) an analysis of the unit type and condition 

19 of— 

20 (A) housing owned by the covered agencies; 

21 and 

22 (B) housing leased by the covered agencies; 

23 (2) an analysis of the employment status of the 

24 occupants of the housing analyzed under paragraph 

25 (1), including— 


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1 (A) whether the occupants are— 

2 (i) members of the permanent work3 force; or 

4 (ii) members of the seasonal workforce; 

5 and 

6 (B) which positions identified under sub7 paragraph (A) required housing provided by the 

8 applicable covered agency as a condition of em9 ployment with the covered agency; and 

10 (3) an analysis of the private housing markets 

11 within the vicinity of a covered agency field unit, in12 cluding— 

13 (A) the availability and affordability of 

14 housing for sale or lease; and 

15 (B) the impact of vacation rental services 

16 on— 

17 (i) the cost of living; and 

18 (ii) the available supply of housing. 

19 SEC. 402. CONDUCTING OVERSIGHT ON THE HOUSING PRO20 GRAMMING OF LAND MANAGERS. 

21 (a) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 18 months 

22 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller Gen23 eral of the United States shall submit to the appropriate 

24 committees of Congress a report that— 


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1 (1) assesses, in consultation with the National 

2 Housing Council described in Office of Management 

3 and Budget Circular A–45, the effect of Office of 

4 Management and Budget Circular A–45R on the 

5 housing of the workforce of covered agencies; 

6 (2) assesses the effect of Office of Management 

7 and Budget Circular A–11 on the housing of the 

8 workforce of covered agencies; 

9 (3) assesses the effect of department-level guid10 ance on the housing of the workforce of covered agen11 cies; 

12 (4) assesses the effect of agency-level guidance on 

13 the housing of the workforce of covered agencies; and 

14 (5) identifies suggested administrative actions 

15 and legislative proposals to reform the guidance as16 sessed under paragraphs (1) through (4), including— 

17 (A) improvements to tenant experience; 

18 (B) improvements to workforce housing sup19 ply, including— 

20 (i) housing managed by the covered 

21 agencies; and 

22 (ii) leased private market housing; 

23 (C) improvements to financing options; 

24 (D) improvements to public-private part25 nerships; 


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1 (E) improvements to philanthropic engage2 ment; and 

3 (F) improvements to commuting times to 

4 report stations, including— 

5 (i) available housing in the gateway 

6 communities; 

7 (ii) available housing in the nearest es8 tablished community (as defined in Office of 

9 Management and Budget Circular A–45); 

10 and 

11 (iii) differences between normal com12 muting conditions and peak-commute traf13 fic conditions, including considerations 

14 for— 

15 (I) road quality and condition; 

16 (II) availability of public trans17 portation; 

18 (III) winter driving; and 

19 (IV) visitor traffic. 

20 (b) IMPLEMENTATION.—Not later than 1 year after the 

21 date on which the report is submitted under subsection (a), 

22 the heads of the covered agencies shall carry out the admin23 istrative actions identified under paragraph (5) of that sub24 section. 


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1 SEC. 403. JUSTIFYING EMERGENCY SPENDING. 

2 Section 5 of the Act of August 3, 1956 (70 Stat. 1033, 

3 chapter 950; 7 U.S.C. 2228), is amended— 

4 (1) by striking the section designation and all 

5 that follows through ‘‘The Department’’ and inserting 

6 the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 5. EMERGENCY SUBSISTENCE FOR EMPLOYEES. 

8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Department’’; and 

9 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(b) REPORT.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para12 graph (3), not later than 30 days after the date on 

13 which the Secretary of Agriculture furnishes subsist14 ence to employees under subsection (a), the Secretary 

15 of Agriculture shall submit to the appropriate com16 mittees of Congress (as defined in section 2 of the 

17 Land Manager Housing and Workforce Improvement 

18 Act of 2024) a report providing— 

19 ‘‘(A) 1 or more justifications for the use of 

20 the authority; 

21 ‘‘(B) the number of employees that were fur22 nished subsistence; 

23 ‘‘(C) the estimated cost of furnishing sub24 sistence; and 

25 ‘‘(D) the expected duration for which sub26 sistence is to be provided. 


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1 ‘‘(2) OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET.— 

2 The information for a report required under para3 graph (1) shall be produced in coordination with, and 

4 approved by, the Director of the Office of Management 

5 and Budget. 

6 ‘‘(3) EXCEPTION.—A report under paragraph (1) 

7 shall not be required in the case of an emergency re8 sulting from a natural disaster, act of terrorism, or 

9 other man-made disaster.’’. 


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Calendar No. 644 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5125 

A BILL 

To provide for certain improvements to the housing 

ment agencies, and for other purposes. and workforce programs of Federal land manageNOVEMBER 21, 2024 

Reported with an amendment 


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