>> the senate expected to be back later this afternoon. lawmakers are expected to hold the confirmation vote for daniel grannis to become a circuit judge for the ninth circuit. if confirmed, he would be the 42nd circuit court judge and the 126 judge overall to be approved by the senateduring the trump administration. and also later today, lawmakers plan to work on more us district judge nominations. when the senate returns, live coverage on cspan2 . >> we're back with martial artist whose theproduct director for restore america , our pew charitabletrust, thank you for being with us . >> thanks forhaving me . >> first of all, i want to

talk about what restore american parts is and what the pew charitable trust is. >> the restoring parts campaign started three years ago at pew and we are focused on protecting national park resources, cultural resources, natural resources by addressing the deferred maintenance backlog at plaguing our national parks system. currently there are $12 billion worth of repairs that needs to be done across our parts nationwide.os have been underfunded the ks entire time or is it something that happened over the past few years suddenly ? >> it's been happening over a number of years, the past edecade or more for another reason, our national parks service is over 100 years old . and he is silly and infrastructure parks are

deteriorating, a lot of the infrastructure is reached the end of its lifespan read you that over 300 million visitors come to our parks each year, that had some pressure and yet absolutely right, there's just not enough funding eachyear for the parks service to keep up with repairs . >> let's set the scene, how many national parks are there and who is in charge, who tmanages the national parks? >> the federal agency that manages the parks is the parks service and there are currently 19 national parks units and national park units al, we're talking about the iconic western parts you might think of. yellowstone, yosemite. we are also talking about battlefield like gettysburg, lakeshore, cape cod national shore. national emissaries, national recreation areas though their taking care of a lot of sites out there and they are very diverse.

>> what are the type of repairs you're talking about needing to be done? are we talking about fencing, benches, campsites? what exactly, what are the type of repairs that you think need to be done to the national parks. >> and mark. >> parks are similar to cities and towns in the infrastructure that they're taking care of. we often think of these scenic vistas and wildlife which currently is in our parks but people don't realize that our national parks are managing over 5000 miles of paved roads, 28,000 buildings, things like visitor centers, employee housing,historic structures . we're talking about water systems, water lines that provide drinking water or visitors. sewage systems to take care of restrooms that visitors certainly want in their parks and many of this infrastructure is over 50 to 60 years old at this point.

u >> are there any areas that are focusing on more than others or are we talking about the entire system. >> and mark is there something particular for example as you said at gettysburg that you know needs to be fixed right now as opposed to just a general overall everything needs to be, all the infrastructure needs to be updated? >> we're trying to address this issue systemwide. the parks have a list that they have and they want to address issues part by part but what we would like to see is a solution that provides dedicated funding for the parks service so they're not just reliant on annual appropriations which simply aren't enough. and luckily there is a solution. there is bipartisan legislation in the house and senate that would provide the dedicated funding for our parks. >> we're talking this morning about the condition of the

national parks and what can be done and what should be done to make sure the national parks are there for all of us in the future. if you would like to join t this conversation, were going to open our phone lines by region this morning 48if you are in the eastern or central time zone, we want to hear from you at 202748 8000. if you are in the mountains or pacific time zone, we want to hear from you at 202 748 8001 and we have a special line, if you have visited a national park in the last year we especially want to hear from you, tell us about what you saw in the park and what you think needs to be done. that line for people who visited a national park in the last year will be 202 748 8002 and we're always reading on social media at c-span and on facebook at facebook.com/áuntran9á so if you're given control, how much money do you think is

needed to bring our national parks around the nation up to snuff? >> the priority repairs that need to be addressed total over $8 billion. those are the repairs that are most important to address , the mission of each part differs in safety, health and the protection of resources so legislation in front of congress right now and i should add that that is supported by over a third of the senate and two thirds of the house and the administration. that would provide over $6 billion over a period of five years. that is enough to put the park service on sound footing and address those most important repair needs and that's a good start.' >> let's talk to mark calling from napa california, good morning. mark, good morning. mark, are you there? we can hear you.

>> caller: i'm right here, thank you. i'm glad that the national parks are being looked at as far as maintenance, that needs to be done and i've done a lot of camping myself so my family and i, we went to these national parks all i e time and in california see the ccc, california conservation corps which is a bunch of teenagers going out there and maintaining the local parks here where i live in napa and they're doing a great job but just our parks really need help and they're so beautiful, they've been here for such a long time area a lot of history so i'm glad they're being looked at. >> guest: you bring up a interesting point, there are partnerships that involve students and veterans and they do fantastic work. they help us with trails so

that's very helpful for the parks service, it helps them save money. elunfortunately groups like that, partnerships like that, they're not able to do some of the work like roadwork and addressing sewage systems. so we want to keep up this partnership, but we still need that significant investment from congress to address some of those projects that partnerships and philanthropists don't want to take on. >> some people have a question about the cost. especially given all the other costs ofor the government, from the government and here's a tweet that came in that says the federal government pays 200 million an hour in social security and medicare. there is no money for anything else. what would you say to people who say we just don't have the money and we have more tiimportant priorities in national parks? >> this isnot based on

taxpayer funds , it comes from energy, development, royalties and this is energy development that occurs on federal lands and waters. this is not a new concept. this is something that's been going on since the 1920s and the 1950s so we feel that that's a good use of royalties, using it to support our parks s. the other response i would say that investing in our parks as a huge rate of return. parks are economic drivers, not only do they protect resources but they enable visitors to support local economies and in fact the number last year is $20 billion that people are pumping into local economies. those are often times rural economies. >> host: let's talk to louise calling from arlington west virginia.

>> caller: good morning. i agree we do need to restore our parks . i watched the senate speaking about that the other day and i'm glad the senate is breaking this up. i think that we should have manufacturers or local people in the state furnish the concession stands and a gift shop. it seems as if everything is made in china and you pay $70 for a jacket that's made in china. why can't we get a $70 jacket or $30 t-shirt made in america west and mark i think it's awful. there are so many good artists in the state all over the place and i think these arts and these craftspeople should be selling all these things in our parks so i agree that they're doing a good job to restore the parks act. i think it's a great thing and i look forward to going

to our national. >>. >> guest: i can't concession specifically but i know in a number of parks, if you go to the visitors astore , many of those are run by groups that support the park so a significant amount of the proceeds will go to various programs to help the park, whether it's deferred maintenance or education programs. so you might want to ask next time you're in the park how are you helping the park west and mark e. >> host: one of the issues the national parks are going through is at the grand canyon where the trans-kenyan pipeline, the 50-year-old pipeline carrying water across the canyon to supply

the south rim is suffering from multiple breaks and leaks every year and needs replacing. senator martin mcnally asked the supervisor liz archuleta to explain the importance of the water pipeline for the grand canyon and hears that exchange. >> can you elaborate more on the importance of the pipeline project getting completed as soon as possible and the implications should it not be completed because of what again, what draws from all over the world to the grand canyon and the impact that wouldhave not just on the park but also on local communities in our state ? >> thank you very much senator mc sally and thank you for the question. what we find is the pipeline continuously breaks because of rock fallsand when it breaks , it creates a tremendous burden on the visitor and also on the park. so when people are coming to the grand canyon and people see it as the ground crown jewel of parks and they want to have this experience and then they go and use portable

restroom facilities. they're eating from paper plates to cause the restaurants cannot use water to wash dishes. the parks services constantly scrambling to figure out how can they all water to the park when the pipeline breaks so now they just anticipated, right now they're going to level ii water restrictions, making arrangements for water to be hauled, to be stored in tanks because they anticipate the pipeline is going to break. so when you have this and people begin to hear about it, visitors, not only is the defense diminished but people question do we want togo to the grand canyon national park . this is a tremendous burden for the economy because we depend on tourists for our economy and as a gateway community, flagstaff, william, all of the surrounding communities that struggle . this then creates a burden for the counties and for our economy.

>> is there legislation in front of congress right now that would resolve this problem? and what is best and is bipartisan? >> there is legislation in the house and senate and is probably a bipartisan as you can get. and in the senate the 500 to restore our parks act and in the house hr 1225. the restore parks and public land. they were introduced earlier in the year and in the senate a third of the members support this still. in the house, two thirds support the bill and the 300 members out of 435 and the administration is also on board. just lastweek , there was a hearing on the issues in the senate. and on wednesday, wednesday this past week, the bill was passed out of the house committee of jurisdiction. so this is moving along. and now we want leadership to

make time for a vote. >> let's talk to jim was calling from westville massachusetts. good morning.>>. >> i've been visiting parks now for the last four decades. there probably some of the most wonderful places you can visit on the planet. money aside though, we all realize parks to a tremendous amount of funding. money aside, the issue i have with theparks is the enforcement of the rules . years ago, back in the 60s and 70s, a ranger was more or less an enforcement officer and they all have the power to enforce the rules. i go to the parks now and the behavior of the guests, many of them is its atrocious. campgrounds are loud and noisy and people are misbehaving in the bathrooms. i see things that i don't

even want to mention.and the park is being run by college graduates . they're not able to enforce the rules have to time and it makes them a mess. theother issues , i'm a backcountry traveler, backpacker and the trails and overcrowded and now they're permitting of the parks, i'd like to see the united states citizens have first shot at the backcountry permits and i'd like to see the handicaps get first shot out of those people. >> i think you have some interesting ideas. but i haven't. those issues myself. >> ..

that is certainly something that needs to be addressed. >> let's look at some of the tweets from the viewers. we have a lotec of people on social media talking about how they love the national park. one tree says, national parks our treasure, given the money, we love u.s. national parks, last year we visited rocky mou mount, but mchaley and glacier base. all were outstanding, we have one tweet with the question. user feee a parkeeti instead of the u.s. tax paper footing the bill. what would your position be on the park user fee instead of using taxpayer money? >> this legislation does not use taxpayer money. there is a fee for some percs, an entry fee. one thing to consider, 419

parks, only 118 parks charge fees. something to fit think about, it is difficult for some parks to charge fees. the national mall behind us, where were they have an entry booth for all these people coming to the national mall. is there a better technology that the park service can use, can they partner with groups who haver technology to collect fe? and to add more entry points. these fees are fairly nominal. that might be one way for the park service to get fees at war parks. >> let's talk to eileen who is fromle midland michigan. good morning. >> good morning. i am barel very strongly againsy more funding for the parks. i am against funding when we have trillions of dollars in debt. it is kind to realize that we

should be operating with the. budget. >> good response. >> i would remind people investing in parks has a high rate of return. most numbers o in congress wanta park in the district, they support parks in their district, and if there is local officials or mayors or counties that you know if you talk toyo them, i guess they are supportive of the legislation.om it some of the biggest advocates because they understandge the revenue at park tourist bring to their community. >> let's talk to tina calling for massachusetts. >> go ahead with your question. >> actually i was wondering if

such folks and even corporations like mobile exxon and all that, it would look good on their implicit to be a temple of the . >> were you able to understandhe the question. >> i think so. the question was, has corporations weighted and supported parks. there has been put corporations with partners of the park service in the national park foundation to support parks and also individuals, there's an individual who has supported the repair of the lincoln memorial and the washington monument.

the issue is, there several issues with that. philanthropists are not' interested in supporting the into u sewages systems. those are major issues that need to be addressed in our parks. visitors may not see them, they may not see the sewage systems that are leaching into the waters f underneath their feet d watersheds. the other issue is corporations often times havee volunteers, forces of volunteers that they want to help out with in the parks in the parks don't have the manpower to help regulate and disperse volunteers. it is a staffing issue. >> the national park service is are advocating for some of the money it needs to bring the national parks backup to the

position they should be. here is a video from the national parks talking about the things that they think they ne need. >> a lifetime ago, when we started this journey, we were inspired by each other to create something greater than ourselves. a place to feel alive. and ensure what always was will always be. when he saved the nation and they save the world. when we were divided and united. we aimed higher and never stopped looking up. but along the way, my roads grew

old. my bridges showed years of weight. my trails big culture became well-traveled. i was there for them. and i will be there for you. will you be there for me? ♪ >> the government has gone through several shutdowns over political arguments over the last few years, how has that affected national parks? >> the most recent shutdown was fairly long, it had a numberr of impacts, it seemed every paper had a picture of people who were upset about the shutdown, they

did not have the access that they wanted. one thing it showed us people certainly do like the parks. parks always get the headlight during the shutdown. the actual impact on the park service, it came at a terrible time with the park service was trying to line up seasonal employees for the summer. and they were not able to do that, that put them back about a month and a half. they also had to stop doing contracting in much of the contracting was for deferred maintenance projects. so some of the projects now are going to be delayed and create even more of a logjam. and of course the shutdown has an impact when less people are going to parks and not making hotel reservations, it has an impact on local economies. >> let's talk to carl' from des moines, iowa good morning. >> good morning it is a great

segue to my question. it was about the effects that fascist and chief shutdown had on the united states of america, julie joshua tree national park. my understanding is some of the elk is cancer of the following behavior badly. and possibly put in national park century back. the only way to counter this past fighting cancer, vote for bernie.ro >> protecting our parks is a pabipartisan issue. so i think itue is important tht democrats, republicans, independents all work together. >> let's talk to lloyd from three lakes wisconsin.

lloyd, good morning. >> good morning. i am calling about the person who called about the campgrounds being not kept up. there are a lote of campgrounds years ago run by the national park system employees, rangers. things change budgets got cut, those people privatized who takes care of those grounds. i agree with the person that those qualities of campgrounds changed and when you privatize it thinking you're saving money, your parks became more not likable to visit. >> i think that is part of the problem, years ago they had archaeologists that worked at national parks or for service and they did projects where they had asked volunteers to come

work and show them how to do archaeological things or restore things for free. those people would work a week or two volunteering and eventually all that changed when those employees, either retired and never replace the present and thenn privatized it by something with that company comes in bids against for a project to restore building, yes they probably do cheaper, i don't believe they do the quality that they should. >> is privatization a problem customer. >> there are some campgrounds that may be privatized but the majority are run by park service in place. privatization is a word that scares people. what we should be talking about is partnerships. there are projects and park service employees mayay not have

peace today. it may make sense. >> let's go to mark from california. mark, good morning. >> hi, i would like to ask if the guest or anyone else in the audience thanks the u.s. over the national park system is constitutional. i believe it is not, i've been to several and think you're beautiful. i do not think it is a national government responsibility. >> well congress established the national park service in 1916. it has establishing legislation that mandates the park service to protect parks -- >> everyday at seven easter, you can watch this portion and all "washington journal" online at c-span.org. we are leaving this at as the u.s. senate will gobble next to take up the following lunches to

consider entering consume the court of appeals judge for the ninth circuit. a confirmation vote is later today in the u.s. senate. next up, senate coverage, live on c-span2. order. the presiding officer: the senator from california. mrs. feinstein: i understand the procedure. are we in morning business? the presiding officer: we're postcloture on the bress nomination. mrs. feinstein: well, i would ask unanimous consent to speak on are