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Increasing Competition 



In our opinion, any effort to reform concessions policy should 

 include greater competition in the awarding of concessions 

 contracts. Competition could improve both the return to the 

 government and the quality of visitor services. H.R. 2028, H.R. 

 773, and title V of H.R. 721 encourage greater competition and 

 limit the preferential right of renewal. 



H.R. 2028 establishes a competitive selection process for 

 awarding concessions contracts. It also proposes that no 

 concessioner have a guaranteed preferential right of renewal. 

 However, a concessioner could acquire a limited preference on the 

 basis of its performance over the term of the contract. By linking 

 a limited preference to performance, the bill would provide 

 concessioners with a performance incentive while still providing a 

 competitive environment in the awarding of new contracts. 



H.R. 773 and title V of H.R. 721 establish a competitive 

 selection process for awarding the Park Service's concessions 

 contracts. However, both guarantee a preferential right of renewal 

 for concessioners generating less than $500,000 annually- -which 

 constitute about three-quarters of all current park concessioners. 

 While removing preference for the largest concessioners is a good 

 start toward creating a competitive environment in the awarding of 

 concessions contracts, we continue to believe that a preferential 

 right should not be guaranteed for any park concessioner. 



Improving Return to the Federal Government 



H.R. 2028, H.R. 773, and title V of H.R. 721 each propose 

 expanding competition in awarding concessions contracts. This 

 competition will likely result in a better return to the government 

 from the concessioners. 



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