FIRST ON FOX: Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee ranking member John Barrasso, R-Wyo., probed the national park trust in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s, D-Calif., district on its federally required financial self-sufficiency.
Barrasso sent the letter to Presidio Trust chair Lynne Benioff regarding the trust’s federal financial obligations.
The Presidio Trust in San Francisco oversees the national park and, per the legislation that established the trust, it must be financially self-sustainable.
“The Presidio Trust Act states that the Presidio of San Francisco must be financially self-sufficient and should not receive funding from the American taxpayer,” Barrasso wrote. “The Presidio Trust’s website further confirms this by stating that the park is managed ‘at no cost to the taxpayers.'”
Barrasso noted that “$200 million of taxpayer funds” had been “earmarked” for the park by Pelosi and House Democrat leaders “as part of their reckless tax and spending budget legislation” and referenced a Fox News article that revealed several of the trust’s board members – including Benioff – are major Pelosi donors.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., meets with reporters at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2021. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
(AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
The senator requested Benioff respond to a list of questions regarding the trust’s financial obligations, asking if the Presidio is “currently self-sufficient, in accordance with its commitments and the law” and if park “tenants required to contribute funds for the maintenance and the deferred maintenance of the facility.”
He also asked for the board to provide its “plan” for the hundreds of millions of dollars in funds as well as a “full accounting of deferred maintenance within the Presidio” and a list of current park tenants.
U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi with fellow Democrats at a news conference
(Getty )
The Presidio trust’s board includes several Democratic donors who have cumulatively given hundreds of thousands of dollars to pro-Pelosi efforts over the years.
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Drew Hammill, a spokesperson for Pelosi, told Fox News in a Thursday phone call that the park predates the current board members and that the Presidio national park has been a legislative hallmark of the speaker’s congressional career.
Hammill also blasted the idea that the donors being on the board had anything to do with the proposal for the park to receive $200 million in taxpayer dollars, calling it a “made-up silly thing out of disinformation” and noting Pelosi is “known for preserving the Presidio” in her life in public service.
The Presidio Trust did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment.
Houston Keene is a reporter for Fox News Digital. You can find him on Twitter at @HoustonKeene.
