The Secretary of the Interior oversees the Department of the Interior, which manages federally owned lands and agencies such as the National Parks Service. The position is a member of the Presidential Cabinet and requires Senate confirmation. The department employs thousands of Americans and has a budget in the billions of dollars.
The United States Secretary of the Interior oversees the United States Department of the Interior, a branch of the government concerned with the conservation and management of federally owned lands. A number of government services fall under the authority of the Department of the Interior, ranging from the Bureau of Indian Affairs to the National Parks Service. Because the Secretary of the Interior oversees a very large and diverse government department, the position can have some very unique demands.
The Secretary of the Interior is a member of the Presidential Cabinet. As such, he is in line to succeed the Presidency, although it would take a rather catastrophic event for the Presidency to fall to the Secretary of the Interior, as he is eighth in line. Like other officials in cabinet-level positions, the Secretary of the Interior must be confirmed in the Senate before he can take office. During confirmation hearings, members of the Senate typically ask questions designed to determine whether or not the candidate is a good fit for the position.
Numerous agencies are operated by the Department of the Interior, including the Bureau of Land Management, the Bureau of Reclamation, the United States Geological Survey, the Office of Surface Mining, and the US Fish and Wildlife Service. These organizations are responsible for protecting federal lands and ensuring they are used sustainably and beneficially. Their mandates typically include directives to ensure that all Americans have access to federally owned lands, ranging from the nation’s prized national parks to open tracts of land in the American West that are leased to cattle ranchers.
Like other employees in government administration, the Home Secretary often comes from a political background. Former secretaries have served in state and federal government, for example, and some have worked as lawyers or have worked in some branch of the environmental field. The political appointment of this post can be quite controversial, as he may be making decisions in office that will have a long-term impact on Americans, such as decisions about mining, oil drilling, logging, or road laying.
As you might imagine, the Secretary of the Interior is assisted by a very large support staff. The Department of the Interior employs thousands of Americans, who work in a variety of fields, from geology to forestry. The budget for the department is typically in the billions of dollars, with funds supporting a wide variety of initiatives, from installing sanitation facilities in national parks to providing scholarships to Native Americans.
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