Foreign visitors to the Taj Mahal in India will pay a fee of $ 18, said Mike Enzi.
Washington:
An influential US senator has proposed legislation seeking to charge additional fees between $ 16 and $ 25 to foreign nationals visiting the country’s national parks, arguing that India does the same for monuments like the Taj Mahal.
Such a proposal as an amendment to the Great American Outdoors Act proposed by Senator Mike Enzi aims to generate the funds necessary to maintain and modernize many of the best national monuments and national parks in the United States.
To close the park’s current maintenance gap, it would cost nearly $ 12 billion, according to the National Park Service. In comparison, last year, the National Park Service’s total budget was $ 4.1 billion. The amendment is fully offset and provides a permanent solution, said the senator.
“The way my amendment works is to ask our foreign visitors, who, as the figures show, appreciate our parks more and more, to pay $ 16 or $ 25 more when they enter the country,” said M Enzi.
According to a study by the US Travel Association, almost 40% of people who come to the United States from abroad visit one of the national parks. More than 14 million people come from abroad and visit national parks, he said.
“It is great that people around the world recognize the value of these national treasures, but this increase in visits adds to the maintenance backlog and it is right that we are asking them to help maintain these national treasures,” said he declared.
Enzi said the concept was nothing new, since anyone who visited an attraction outside of the United States likely had to pay for it somehow.
“For example, foreign visitors to the Taj Mahal in India will pay a fee of $ 18, compared to only 56 cents for local visitors. At Kruger National Park in South Africa, visitors from outside the country will pay a fee of $ 25 per day, compared to $ 6.25 for local visitors, “said Mr. Enzi.
Many European countries like Spain, France and Italy levy a tourist tax on hotel rooms which is used to pay for tourist infrastructure, he added.
Mr. Enzi proposed to also increase the national tax.
“No one likes to pay more for things, especially at times like these, but to keep these national treasures for future generations, we borrow money and put it on the national credit card or take modest steps to resolve problems responsibly, “he said.
“My amendment increases entrance fees by only $ 5 and annual passes by $ 20, so bringing a vehicle to a park would be even cheaper than bringing a family of four to the movies or visiting an amusement park for a day, “said Enzi.
