National Park System Long-Term Lease Investment Act | ChamberLight

REPORTED· 119TH CONGRESS

Senate BillS 2498Land use and conservationParks, recreation areas, trails

National Park System Long-Term Lease Investment Act

INTRO JUL 29· LAST ACTION SEP 17

READING

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STEP 3 / 8

Introduced

In Committee

Reported

Passed Senate

Passed House

Conference

To President

Became Law

WHAT THE BILL DOES

AI-written

This bill matters because it changes how the government handles business contracts within our national parks. Currently, many contracts for services in national parks are open to competitive bidding, which means different companies can compete for the opportunity to provide services. This system is designed to ensure fair competition and potentially secure better deals or services for the public.

If this bill becomes law, it would allow the government to bypass this open bidding process for certain existing leases. This could provide stability for current businesses operating in national parks, potentially encouraging them to make long-term investments. However, it could also reduce opportunities for new businesses to enter the park service market and might limit the government's ability to seek out the best possible terms or most innovative services through competition. Voters should care about whether this change would lead to better or worse services and value for money in national parks.

KEY PROVISIONS

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PROVISION 01

Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to extend certain existing leases within national parks without requiring a competitive bidding process.

This provision is significant because it alters the standard process for granting and renewing contracts in national parks, potentially affecting market competition.

PROVISION 02

Specifies conditions for such extensions, requiring the current lease to be at least 5 years old, the lessee to be compliant, and the extension to be in the park's best interest.

These conditions act as safeguards, ensuring that only established and well-performing operators are considered for non-competitive extensions.

PROVISION 03

Requires the Secretary to revise existing federal regulations within 90 days to reflect this new authority.

This ensures that official government rules and procedures are updated to align with the new law, providing clarity for all parties.

SPONSORSHIP

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ACTION TIMELINE

12 EVENTS

SEP 17

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Reported by Senator Lee with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.

COMMITTEE

SEP 17

Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 638.

CALENDARS

JUL 29

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.

COMMITTEE

JUL 29

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported with an amendment favorably.

COMMITTEE

BILL INFO

TypeSenate Bill

NumberS 2498

Congress119th

StatusReported

IntroducedJul 29, 2025

Last actionSep 17, 2026

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REPORTED· 119TH CONGRESS · ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE · INTRODUCED JUL 29, 2025

Senate BillS 2498Land use and conservationParks, recreation areas, trails

National Park System Long-Term Lease Investment Act

INTRODUCED JUL 29, 2025· LAST ACTION SEP 17, 2026

PASSAGE CHANCES

—%

READING

2 min

COSPONSORS

COMPLEXITY

Moderate

Call my reps

LEGISLATIVE PROGRESS

STEP 3 OF 8

Introduced

In Committee

Reported

Passed Senate

Passed House

Conference

To President

Became Law

Introduced
In Committee
Reported
Passed Senate
Passed House
Conference
To President
Became Law

WHAT THE BILL DOES

AI-written

KEY PROVISIONS

AI-extracted

high

Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to extend certain existing leases within national parks without requiring a competitive bidding process.

This provision is significant because it alters the standard process for granting and renewing contracts in national parks, potentially affecting market competition.

med

Specifies conditions for such extensions, requiring the current lease to be at least 5 years old, the lessee to be compliant, and the extension to be in the park's best interest.

These conditions act as safeguards, ensuring that only established and well-performing operators are considered for non-competitive extensions.

low

Requires the Secretary to revise existing federal regulations within 90 days to reflect this new authority.

This ensures that official government rules and procedures are updated to align with the new law, providing clarity for all parties.

DEADLINES & DATES

AI-extracted

An AI model extracted this from the bill’s official record and can make mistakes. Check the official text ↗ (opens in new tab)

Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act

Secretary of the Interior must revise part 18 of title 36, Code of Federal Regulations, to reflect the new authority.

GLOSSARY

AI-written

Secretary of the Interior: The head of the U.S. Department of the Interior, a cabinet-level position responsible for managing most federal lands and natural resources, including national parks.
National Park System: A network of national parks, monuments, preserves, historic sites, and other protected areas across the U.S. managed by the National Park Service.
Lease: A legal agreement where one party (the 'lessor,' in this case the government) grants another party (the 'lessee,' a business or individual) the right to use property for a specified period in exchange for payment.
Lessee: The person or company that holds a lease; the party that rents or occupies property from another.
Bidding: A process where different individuals or companies offer to undertake a project or provide services for a certain price, with the goal of winning a contract or lease.
Code of Federal Regulations (CFR): The official record of general and permanent rules published in the Federal Register by the Executive departments and agencies of the federal government.

ACTION TIMELINE

12 EVENTS

SEP 17

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Reported by Senator Lee with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.

COMMITTEE

SEP 17

Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 638.

CALENDARS

JUL 29

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.

COMMITTEE

JUL 29

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported with an amendment favorably.

COMMITTEE

READER REACTIONS

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Committee Referrals

Energy and Natural Resources CommitteeReferred

Sep 17, 2026

senate

Related Hearings

Business meeting to consider S.365 and H.R.1729, bills to amend the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act to allow for additional entities to be eligible to complete the maintenance work on Bolts Ditch and the Bolts Ditch Headgate within the Holy Cross Wilderness, Colorado, S.764, to provide for the designation of certain wilderness areas, recreation management areas, and conservation areas in the State of Colorado, S.791, to establish the Justice Thurgood Marshall National Historic Site in the State of Maryland as an affiliated area of the National Park System, S.888, to designate certain land administered by the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service in the State of Oregon as wilderness and national recreation areas, to withdraw certain land located in Curry County and Josephine County, Oregon, from all forms of entry, appropriation, or disposal under the public land laws, location, entry, and patent under the mining laws, and operation under the mineral leasing and geothermal leasing laws, S.945, to amend the Smith River National Recreation Area Act to include certain additions to the Smith River National Recreation Area, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate certain wild rivers in the State of Oregon, S.1005, to provide for conservation and economic development in the State of Nevada, S.1088, to provide that the memorial to commemorate the sacrifice and service of the women who worked on the home front to support the efforts of the United States military during World War II may be located on the National Mall, S.1195, to promote conservation, improve public land management, and provide for sensible development in Pershing County, Nevada, S.1257, to amend the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to authorize the use of funds for certain additional Carey Act projects, S.1341, to amend the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1993 to add certain land to the Sarvis Creek Wilderness, S.1349, to withdraw the National Forest System land in the Ruby Mountains subdistrict of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest and the National Wildlife Refuge System land in Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge, Elko and White Pine Counties, Nevada, from operation under the mineral leasing laws, S.1476, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate certain segments of the Gila River system in the State of New Mexico as components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, to provide for the transfer of administrative jurisdiction over certain Federal land in the State of New Mexico, S.1737, to designate and expand wilderness areas in Olympic National Forest in the State of Washington, and to designate certain rivers in Olympic National Forest and Olympic National Park as wild and scenic rivers, S.1777, to amend the California Desert Protection Act of 1994 to expand the boundary of Joshua Tree National Park, to redesignate the Cottonwood Visitor Center at Joshua Tree National Park as the "Dianne Feinstein Visitor Center", S.1870, to adjust the boundary of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area to include the Rim of the Valley Corridor, S.2498, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to extend certain leases within units of the National Park System without opening the lease to bidding, S.2767 and H.R.5254, bills to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to enter into an agreement with the Gateway Arch Park Foundation to host private events in Gateway Arch National Park buildings, S.2801, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of designating the Canterbury Shaker Village National Heritage Area, S.2887, to amend the National Trails System Act to designate the Route 66 National Historic Trail, S.2933, to redesignate a playground in the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve in the State of West Virginia as the "Hearts of Gold Playground: In Honor of West Virginia Children and Families Impacted by Childhood Cancer", S.2968, to ensure access to certain public land, S.3194, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of designating certain land in California as the Monterey Bay National Heritage Area, S.3313 and H.R.6365, bills to require the Secretary of the Interior to issue a right-of-way for an emergency exit on certain National Park Service land in the State of Virginia, S.3409, to reaffirm that the Bureau of Reclamation retains exclusive ownership, operational control, and financial responsibility for the Lower Yellowstone Fish Bypass Channel, ensuring long-term conservation of the endangered pallid sturgeon and other native aquatic species in the Yellowstone River while protecting the Lower Yellowstone Irrigation Project and District from undue financial and operational burdens, S.3635 and H.R. 7250, bills to reauthorize the Fort Peck Reservation Rural Water System Act of 2000, S.3715 and H.R.6380, bills to establish the Chiricahua N

Energy and Natural Resources Committee (senate)Jul 29, 2026

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Hearings to examine S.1674, to modify the boundary of the Mammoth Cave National Park in the State of Kentucky, S.2498, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to extend certain leases within units of the National Park System without opening the lease to bidding, S.2767 and H.R.5254, bills to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to enter into an agreement with the Gateway Arch Park Foundation to host private events in Gateway Arch National Park buildings, S.2801, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of designating the Canterbury Shaker Village National Heritage Area, S.2887, to amend the National Trails System Act to designate the Route 66 National Historic Trail, S.2933, to redesignate a playground in the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve in the State of West Virginia as the "Hearts of Gold Playground: In Honor of West Virginia Children and Families Impacted by Childhood Cancer", S.2969, to amend title 54, United States Code, to provide that State law shall apply to the use of motor vehicles on roads within a System unit, S.3131, to provide for the inclusion on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall of the names of the lost crew members of the USS Frank E. Evans killed on June 3, 1969, S.3194, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of designating certain land in California as the Monterey Bay National Heritage Area, S.3313 and H.R.6365, bills to require the Secretary of the Interior to issue a right-of-way for an emergency exit on certain National Park Service land in the State of Virginia, S.3371, to designate the Museum of the Blind People's Movement in Baltimore, Maryland, as the "National Museum of the Blind People's Movement", S.3456 and H.R.183, bills to amend the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act to provide for a free annual National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass for law enforcement officers and firefighters, S.3501, to amend the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act to designate as a component of the National Heritage Area System the Calumet National Heritage Area in the States of Indiana and Illinois, S.3524, to amend title 54, United States Code, to modify certain cost-sharing requirements for grant programs under the American Battlefield Protection Program, S.3542, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate the Upper Raritan River Watershed in the State of New Jersey for study for potential addition to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, S.3720, to amend the National Trails System Act to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study on the feasibility of designating the Bay Area Ridge as a national scenic trail, S.3785, to authorize direct emergency acquisition flexibilities for the National Park Service and Forest Service for the purpose of retaining, vetting, approving, and expediting contractor approval for the clearing, rebuilding, maintenance, and improvement of areas of the Grand Canyon National Park and Kaibab National Forest damaged by certain wildfires, S.3925, to establish the Julius Rosenwald and Rosenwald Schools National Historical Park, S.4238, to amend the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act to designate as a component of the National Heritage Area System the Endless Mountains National Heritage Area in the State of Pennsylvania, S.4399, to provide for certain conveyances under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, S.4538, to amend the National Trails System Act to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study on the feasibility of designating Washington's Trail-1753 as a national historic trail, S.4595, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate the Mullica River watershed in New Jersey for study for potential designation as a wild and scenic river, S.4767, to extend the authorization of the African American Civil Rights Network, H.R.2306, to reauthorize the Adams Memorial Commission, H.R.5729, to authorize direct emergency acquisition flexibilities for the National Park Service for the purpose of retaining, vetting, approving, and expediting contractor approval for the clearing, rebuilding, maintenance, and improvement of the Grand Canyon grounds that have been impacted by the Dragon Bravo Fire, and H.R.7618, to amend title 54, United States Code, to modify certain cost-sharing requirements for grant programs under the American Battlefield Protection Program.

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National Park System Long-Term Lease Investment Act

LEGISLATIVE PROGRESS

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KEY PROVISIONS

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National Park System Long-Term Lease Investment Act

LEGISLATIVE PROGRESS

WHAT THE BILL DOES

KEY PROVISIONS

DEADLINES & DATES

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