OREGON
A10 — THE OBSERVER
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2021
Nominee from Oregon
pledges to boost workforce
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
WASHINGTON, D.C.
— Chuck Sams on Tuesday,
Oct. 19, stepped out pub-
licly for the fi rst time not
as an administrator for the
Confederated Tribes of
the Umatilla Indian Res-
ervation, a nonprofi t exec-
utive or a veteran, but as
the potential director of the
National Park Service.
With his wife and eldest
daughter seated behind
him, Sams introduced him-
self to the U.S. Senate
Committee on Energy
and Natural Resources at
a confi rmation hearing in
Washington, D.C. In his
opening statement, Sams,
an enrolled member of
the CTUIR, said his lin-
eage is split between the
Cayuse, Walla Walla,
Yankton Sioux, Cocopah,
Dutch and French, the roots
of his American Indian
family stretching back at
least 15,000 years, or “time
immemorial.”
He also addressed his
lack of experience in the
park service.
“Although I have not
worn the National Park
Service uniform, I have
worn the uniform of the
United States Navy during
war time, and I wear the
regalia of my tribe to honor
my ancestors and elders,”
he said. “These uniforms
are reminders of the sac-
rifi ces made to protect our
homelands and the respon-
sibility to pass down those
lands in a stronger state
than they are now.”
On a day when com-
mittee members seemed
to train most of their scru-
tiny on the other two presi-
dential nominees they were
vetting simultaneously —
potential appointees to the
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission and the U.S.
Lose Weight Now,
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Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian, File
Chuck Sams, a former interim executive director of the Confederated
Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, stepped out publicly for
the fi rst time not as an administrator for the Confederated Tribes of
the Umatilla Indian Reservation, a nonprofi t executive or a veteran,
but as the potential director of the National Park Service.
Department of Energy — it
was one of a few points of
concern for some senators.
Since its creation in 1916,
the National Park Ser-
vice has mostly relied on
career service staff or expe-
rienced state park admin-
istrators to lead it. If con-
fi rmed, Sams would be the
fi rst director without expe-
rience in public parks since
former director Roger Ken-
nedy was named to the job
in 1993.
Sams told the com-
mittee he intended to rely
on the experience of career
staff while making deci-
sions for the park service.
He also got backup from
his home state senator, Ron
Wyden, who extolled Sams’
other experience in his
introduction.
“The National Park Ser-
vice gives us the ability to
visit places most Ameri-
cans would not or could not
otherwise reach, and they
play a vital role in teaching
us. I can’t think of any-
body better and more qual-
ifi ed to do that than Chuck
Sams, with his unique
perspective as the fi rst
Native American to lead
the Park Service,” he said.
“Quite frankly, this is long
overdue.”
But most committee
members wanted to talk
with Sams about park per-
sonnel and maintenance.
A surge in visits to the
country’s national parks
and historical sites has
stretched a shrunken staff
and strained the system’s
infrastructure. Several sen-
ators asked Sams ques-
tions about problems in
their home state parks: Sen.
Mike Lee, R-Utah, on inac-
cessible boat ramps at Glen
Canyon National Recreation
Area; Sen. Martin Heinrich,
D-New Mexico, on fencing
the Valles Caldera National
Preserve to prevent cattle
grazing; and Sen. Lisa
Murkowski, R-Alaska, on
a closed road at Denali
National Park.
Sams said he was now
aware of all of these issues,
and more broadly, planned
to prioritize building staff
morale, advocate for more
park funding, improve
recruiting and invest in
park infrastructure that
could stand for the next “50
to 75 years.”
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