July 14 -- The National Park Service invites comments to OMB by August 14, 2023 regarding the Socioeconomic Monitoring Study of National Park Service Visitors.
From its founding more than a century ago, the National Park Service (NPS) has been authorized to collect information that will “improve the ability of the Service to provide state-of-the-art management, protection, and interpretation of, and research on, the resources of the System” (54 U.S.C. 100701). Furthermore, social science research in support of park planning and management is mandated in the NPS Management Policies 2006 (Section 8.11.1, “Social Science Studies”). The NPS pursues a policy that facilitates social science studies in support of the NPS mission to protect resources and enhance the enjoyment of present and future generations (National Park Service Act of 1916, 38 Stat 535, 16 USC 1, et seq.). NPS policy mandates that social science research be used to provide an understanding of park visitors, the non-visiting public, gateway communities and regions, and human interactions with park resources. To support this effort there is a need for the agency to collect and monitor long-term data on socioeconomic indicators (e.g., demographics, spending, perceptions, trip characteristics) to: understand how the NPS is serving the public, inform strategic resource use, and improve visitor experience and non-visitor engagement.
These socioeconomic research needs are expressed in the NPS strategic goals for science, in statements by the NPS leadership, in the report of the Second Century Commission and in the Department of the Interior Strategic Plan for 2018-2022. Additionally, a 2014 Government Accountability Office report (GAO-15-84 Federal Customer Service) identified a need to better understand and monitor customer experience dimensions where results more directly link to investments made by the bureau. A year after the GAO report, the NPS fielded its first pilot study for socioeconomic monitoring in 2015-2016 (Socioeconomic Monitoring Program (SEM1.0); OMB Control # 1024-0224; ex. 5/31/2016) and has continued to improve and refine the NPS Socioeconomic Monitoring Program (SEM) since then.
The NPS fulfills the policy mandates mentioned in this section, through social science information collection activities that include park-specific studies that inform park planning and management. SEM goes beyond park-specific studies. The purpose and intent of SEM is to provide consistent, comprehensive, agency-wide socioeconomic data needed to support park management by improving the agency’s understanding of the demographics and behaviors of park visitors.
Based on these legal mandates, financial investments, and identified gaps in current long-term, annual, agency-wide collections of socioeconomic data from visitors, the NPS is proposing a new information collection request for a robust socioeconomic monitoring program. Past and present socioeconomic research does not allow for comparison across all units within the system needed to provide a comprehensive understanding of park visitation using systematic metrics to monitor the services provided across the entire NPS System.
In 2016, the NPS SSP conducted a pilot study in 14 NPS units to identify and better understand the need for more advanced socioeconomic monitoring. The pilot study produced and verified a study design that will allow SSP to fully implement a Socioeconomic Monitoring Study (SEM).
Building on the findings from the pilot study, the SEM will collect information from visitors at 30 National Park units annually to provide generalizable results for NPS managers and planners across the System to understand and monitor: visitor demographics, economic contribution, services, facilities, and infrastructure investments. Park units will be able to compare their unit data with regional and national-level data to make informed decisions in future planning and management efforts.
The data generated through SEM will be used by NPS leadership and park managers to understand how the visiting public experiences national park units. SEM data will be used to create visitor profiles and learn about visitor demographics, experiences, spending, and uses systemwide. Individual parks will be able to monitor site-specific results against regional and national-level data to make data-driven planning and management decisions. SEM data will provide park staff with a needed understanding of visitor priorities, so managers can make informed planning decisions in alignment with these priorities. Further, participating parks will receive a park-specific final report based on the SEM data that managers will use to improve services and facilities. For example, understanding primary activities and importance placed upon various services and facilities enables park managers to identify and prioritize a suite of recreation programming and infrastructural investments to support these visitor pursuits.
Further, SEM visitor characteristic data will be used by the NPS to understand differences in levels of visitation across various populations and inform management strategies to increase access and visitation of underserved populations.
SEM data will be used by NPS park managers, administrators and program staff to produce planning, management and annual reports, such as the Visitor Spending Effects (VSE) report to compare how visitor demographics and socioeconomic characteristics change over time. SEM results can be included in the Visitor Spending Effects analysis to update park-level visitor spending and trip characteristic data. Most parks currently rely on VSE data from visitor surveys conducted between 2003-2012. SEM results will provide the most reliable way to update several metrics in parks’ visitor use statics calculations, including length of stay and number of recreation visits.
NPS Socioeconomic Monitoriing:
https://www.nps.gov/subjects/socialscience/socioeconomic-monitoring.htm
NPS submission to OMB:
https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAViewICR?ref_nbr=202303-1024-002 Click IC List for information collection instrument, View Supporting Statement for technical documentation. Submit comments through this webpage.
FRN:
https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2023-14889
For AEA members wishing to submit comments, "A Primer on How to Respond to Calls for Comment on Federal Data Collections" is available at
https://www.aeaweb.org/content/file?id=5806