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Members of an important congressional subcommittee on Wednesday gave a cool reception to recommendations from Capitol Visitor Center officials on how tours of the Capitol will be conducted when the new facility opens.
The CVC’s recommendations include allowing constituents to reserve tickets through an advanced reservation system, either by booking them online or through a member’s office. The constituent would then have the option of selecting a tour given by a professional tour guide or by a member or staffer.
This, however, could cause staff-led tours to lose precedence to tours given by professionals, something several members of the panel indicated they wanted to avoid. The tours are seen as an important service allowing members to connect with constituents.
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), the chairwoman of the House Appropriations Committee’s Legislative Branch Subcommittee, said that she is “very concerned” about preserving staff-led tours and that CVC should amend its recommendations to provide more of a focus for staff-led tours.
Wasserman Schultz also noted that 148 House members and 41 senators have signed on to a resolution calling for staff-led tours to continue.
CVC Chief Executive Officer Terrie Rouse said the recommendations were aimed at “integrating, not eliminating staff-facilitated functions into the tour program.” Rouse also suggested members and staffers could accompany professionals on tours.
U.S. Capitol Police Chief Phillip Morse has said professional tour guides could help police better regulate the flow of visitors to the Capitol, as well as improve security.
Several committee members also raised concerns that the Architect of the Capitol’s (AoC) office has yet to award contracts for testing the CVC’s fire alarm and air control systems, although they noted that some testing will begin Friday.
The decision is held up in part by the fact that the AoC has not decided between rival plans on how the tests should be conducted. For example, it is not clear if contractors will test all of the fire alarms in the building or a select number, said Terrell Dorn, the director of infrastructure issues for the Government Accountability Office.
Wasserman Schultz said the AoC should formulate a plan for testing the fire and life safety systems by Nov. 21. Dorn cautioned that delays in awarding the contract to test the alarms could lead to delays in the CVC’s opening date.
Morse told the panel that if lawmakers decide to expand the CVC’s opening hours to Saturdays, this could affect the cost of its operation. He said 21 officers will be hired if the CVC is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., as currently planned, but new officers will be needed if hours increase.
Basic start-up operational cost for the CVC in fiscal 2008 will cost $7.5 million, Rouse said. In fiscal 2009, the CVC will cost an estimated $25 million to $35 million to run. |
