Bureau of Land Management 2018 Visitor Satisfaction Surveys

IB 2018-016
Information Bulletin

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20240
http://www.blm.gov

November 21, 2017

In Reply Refer To:
8300 (WO-250/OC-570) P

EMS TRANSMISSION 12/11/2017

Information Bulletin No. 2018-016

To:                All State Directors

                     Attn: Recreation and National Landscape Conservation System Program Leads

From:           Assistant Director, Resources and Planning

Subject:       Bureau of Land Management 2018 Visitor Satisfaction Surveys                        DD:  12/22/2017                                                                       

Program Area:  Recreation, Visitor Services, National Landscape Conservation System.

This Information Bulletin (IB) documents the decision to continue the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Visitor Satisfaction Survey through calendar year 2018.  This IB requests that each state director in collaboration with their State Recreation Program and National Landscape Conservation System (NLCS) Program leads, select two sites per fiscal year (FY) in their respective area of jurisdiction for visitor satisfaction surveying.  The Eastern States Office may participate at their discretion.

This annual visitor satisfaction survey provides the BLM with data for national performance measures required under the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) of 1993, for both overall visitor satisfaction and with value for fees paid.  This survey also gives BLM site managers vital information on visitor satisfaction with facilities, interpretation/education programs and materials, road/trail maintenance, staff service, and general recreation management.

Each state is asked to complete the following steps:   

  1. Review the Visitor Survey Instrument (Attachment 1) and the Instructions for On-Site Visitor Survey Administration (Attachment 2).
  2. Select two sites/areas that can be sampled in FY 2018 within a two-month time period between January 6, 2018 – September 30, 2018, in accordance with survey instructions developed with Washington State University (WSU).  Selected sites can be either fee or non-fee, and may be a NLCS unit. In choosing these two sites/areas, please consider the following requirements:
  • Select sites that have adequate visitation during the 2-month survey time-period.  It is optimal to distribute approximately 350-400 survey instruments per site to potential respondents, depending upon annual visitation. Therefore, each state must select an appropriate timeframe and sites with adequate visitation to meet this requirement.
  • Select sites that either have adequate on-site staffing or can otherwise provide staff to distribute the surveys in accordance with directions from WSU.  Volunteers can serve in this process.
  • Select sites where the BLM has made an investment to provide recreation opportunities and benefits, since the BLM is asking that survey respondents report on their satisfaction with the BLM’s recreation management activities.  Surveying these types of sites will best allow the BLM to understand how effectively its recreation management is meeting the public’s needs.
  • Select one site/area, if possible, that provides interpretive programming and/or facilities.  It is strongly recommended to choose such a site, so that the BLM can meet the Departmental requirement in reporting GPRA information on interpretive efforts.

3.  Complete a FY 2018 winter/spring/summer Site Profile (Attachment 3) for each of the two sites/areas selected.

4. Submit the completed Site Profiles to David Baker, Outdoor Recreation Planner, National Operations Center (NOC) - Division of Resource Services (DRS), at djbaker@blm.gov by December 22, 2017.

5.  Again this year, we would like the states with sites that experience high visitation during the fall to consider selecting sites for a FY 2019 (October –January) survey.  If a state is interested, they should complete the Fall FY 2019 Site Profile (Attachment 4).  Results from these surveys will be available to BLM in April 2018, and be included in the comprehensive national report available by the end of November 2019.

Once each state’s site/area selections have been approved by the National Recreation and Visitor Services (R&VS) Division, the site selections will be forwarded to the Principal Investigator, Lena Le, Ph.D. at WSU, who will establish the number of surveys to be completed based on the annual visitation of the site.  The following will then take place:

  1. WSU will print scannable surveys with the site name and ship them, along with the locked drop boxes and other survey materials, directly to the site contact person.  The BLM field staff will oversee the administration of the survey on-site during the two-month sampling period between January 6 and September 30, 2018.
  2. Both WSU and BLM NOC staff are available to assist field units with developing their sampling profile, or to answer any questions or address concerns.  Primary contacts for sampling-related issues are Matt Strawn at WSU (email: matthew.strawn@wsu.edu, phone: 509-335-2350) and David Baker at the NOC (email: djbaker@blm.gov, phone: 303-236-6313).
  3. Once the sampling is completed, all survey materials (lock box/es containing the completed surveys, leftover surveys, instruction manual, extra forms) will be returned to WSU.
  4. The survey data will be scanned and analyzed by WSU, and the reports generated and distributed to individual sites.  The final and comprehensive national and site-specific reports will be delivered to the BLM by the end of November 2018.

Each state office should submit a completed FY 2017 Site Profile (Attachment 3) for each of their two site selections by December 22, 2017.  Each state office has the option to submit an additional Fall FY 2019 Site Profile (Attachment 4) for one or two additional site selections by April 27, 2018.

The BLM Washington Office has an agreement with WSU to establish the number of surveys to be administered by site, print the survey (individualized with BLM site names), scan the survey data into a spreadsheet, analyze the data, and prepare both national and site reports.  In addition, administering the survey will require approximately 100 hours of paid staff or volunteer time (surveying and administration) at each of the 22 sites selected to participate in the survey.  However, depending upon annual visitation, site type, the number of surveys to administer, travel time from/to the field office, and level of effort, it may take substantially more than 100 hours to complete the survey.

The BLM Visitor Satisfaction Survey has been conducted annually since 1999 (with the exception of 2002).  The 2018/2019 survey instrument has been approved by OMB.  

Annual visitor satisfaction surveys are required as part of the Annual Performance Plan mandated under GPRA, which stipulates meeting explicit long-term goals related to Recreation and NLCS customer satisfaction measures.

Manual/Handbook Sections Affected:  None.

Coordination included the Resources and Planning Directorate, National Lands and Community Partnerships Directorate and the National Operations Center-DRS (OC-520).

For more information, please contact either Larry Ridenhour, Outdoor Recreation Planner, WO-250, phone: 202-912-7255 or David Baker, Outdoor Recreation Planner, NOC/DRS, phone: 303-236-6313.

 

Signed by:                                                                   Authenticated by:

Steve Tryon                                                                 Robert M. Williams

Acting, Assistant Director                                          Division of IT Policy and Planning,WO-870

Resources and Planning

 

4 Attachments

     1 - Bureau of Land Management Visitor Survey (2pp)

     2 - BLM Visitor Survey - Instructions for On-Site Visitor Survey Administration (2pp)

     3 - Site Profile – FY 2018 Visitor Survey (2pp)

     4 - Site Profile – FY 2019 Visitor Survey (2pp

Attachments

Fiscal Year

2018