OFFICIALS LOSE NATIONAL PARK VACATION PERK

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, February 8, 1992                   TAG: 9202080197
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-12   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Short
OFFICIALS LOSE NATIONAL PARK VACATION PERK
The Interior Department on Friday shut down a longstanding perk for members of Congress and other senior government officials, saying they no longer are welcome for VIP lodging at some of the most scenic national parks.
Interior Secretary Manuel Lujan ordered that four vacation hideaways, including a historic former presidential retreat in Virginia, be off limits for personal cut-rate vacations by senior federal officials, judges and members of Congress.
"Public opinion obviously opposes maintenance of housing in the parks that is available only to members of Congress and high-ranking government officials," Lujan said in a statement. He said the move "will reassure the public that no one has special privileges" in the parks.
The order affected VIP retreats at the Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming, the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia, the Cape Hatteras National Seashore in North Carolina and the Virgin Islands National Park in the Caribbean.
In recent years, the visitors have included numerous members of Congress, senior White House officials, Cabinet members and at least one Supreme Court justice. They paid cut-rate rental fees ranging from $40 to $109 a night, well below commercial rates for comparable lodging.

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB