S. 1083: Land Manager Housing and Workforce Improvement Act of 2025

This bill, titled the "Land Manager Housing and Workforce Improvement Act of 2025", aims to improve housing and workforce programs for federal land management agencies such as the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Forest Service. Here are the key provisions outlined in the bill:

Title I—Expanding Authority

The bill expands the authority of the National Park Service and the Forest Service in several ways:

• Prioritizing workforce housing: It emphasizes the need to prioritize housing for field employees of the National Park Service.
• Off-park housing: It allows the National Park Service to acquire up to 20 acres of land near park boundaries to develop housing for employees, with provisions for managing these lands without them being part of the park system.
• Rental options: It expands rental options for the National Park Service to allow for more flexible housing solutions for employees.
• Leveraging rental receipts: The bill enables the Park Service to use rental receipts for workforce housing programs.
• Forest Service empowerment: It enhances the Forest Service's capabilities to address workforce housing needs, including changes to the duration for which it can grant permits for housing-related infrastructure.

Title II—Expanding Partnership Capacity

This title focuses on enhancing partnerships:

• Engaging partners: It encourages engaging with partners, including state and tribal organizations, to address workforce housing.
• Public-private cooperation: The bill promotes cooperative management agreements with state or local governments to effectively manage adjacent park lands.
• Leveraging philanthropic support: It encourages fundraising and other support from philanthropic organizations to aid workforce housing initiatives.

Title III—Supporting Workforce

This section emphasizes supporting the workforce in land management:

• Recruitment: It allows for the direct recruitment and appointment of qualified individuals to the competitive service who have a permanent residence near park sites.
• Seasonal workforce support: It seeks to improve rehire eligibility for seasonal National Park Service employees by adjusting the criteria that define local commuting areas.

Title IV—Reports and Oversight

The bill establishes reporting and oversight measures:

• Needs assessment report: The Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture have to submit a report assessing the housing needs of land managers within 18 months of the bill's enactment.
• Housing oversight assessment: The Comptroller General is tasked with evaluating the effect of existing guidance on housing for the workforce of covered agencies and recommending improvements.
• Emergency spending justification: The bill amends existing laws to require justifications for emergency spending related to employee subsistence in certain situations.

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