Q. Will there be a new printed pass titled “Volunteer Annual Day Use Pass”?
A. No, the existing corps Annual Day use Pass may be issued to a volunteer who has served 100 hours. There will not be a separate pass developed with the word “Volunteer” printed on it.
Q. Can a volunteer earn more than one pass per year if they work more than 100 hours (200, 300, 400, etc?)
A. Only one Annual Day Use Pass can be earned per volunteer per year. Even if a volunteer has more than 100 hours served, their total current hours will be cashed in at time of pass issuance. However, the volunteer can continue to accumulate hours towards the 250 hour requirement for the America the Beautiful Interagency Volunteer Pass.
Q. For what period are the volunteer passes valid?
A. Both types of volunteer pass are valid for one year from date of issue.
Q. Where can the volunteer use the pass?
A. The Annual Day Use pass is only valid at day use areas operated by the Corps of Engineers. It may not be used at areas operated by other agencies even if those areas are located on Corps-owned property. The America the Beautiful Interagency Volunteer Pass admits the pass owner (volunteer) and passengers in a non-commercial vehicle into all federal areas where a per-vehicle fee is required.
Q. What if the volunteer pass is lost or stolen?
A. Lost or stolen passes will not be replaced unless proof of theft, such as police report or insurance document, which specifies the theft of the pass, is provided.
Q. Can a group or a couple combine their hours to earn a pass?
A. No. Volunteer annual passes must be earned by an individual.
Q. Can more than one person in a family earn a pass? For instance, can a husband/wife that work together as camp hosts each earn a pass?
A. Yes. If each person has served the required hours, they can each earn a pass. However, the pass is non-transferable to another individual.
Q. How do I account for the passes in the pass books?
A. In the space on the receipt where you would typically record the dollar amount collected, you will need to make a note that this is a complimentary pass earned through the Volunteer program. You will be able to cross-check receipts with the reports from the centralized database.
Q. Are all volunteer hours considered equal? For instance, some volunteers may be doing strenuous physical work, while others are out there leaning on a shovel. How do you account for that?
A. A volunteer’s time is valuable, no matter what type of work they are doing. All hours should be considered equal for the sake of tracking.
Q. Some locations are counting their camp hosts as working 24/7 while other locations count only the hours actually spent on duty. Which is correct for tracking hours earned toward a pass?
A. Hours earned should be those when the volunteer is actually on duty.
Q. Are all volunteers that are signed up under a volunteer agreement eligible to earn a pass if/when they reach required hours served? Would the Wounded Warrior/Operation War Fighter volunteers be eligible.
A. Yes, any volunteer signed up under the OF 301A Volunteer Services Agreement form is eligible to earn a pass, including hosted workers paid by another organization.
Q. Do a volunteer's hours ever expire?
A. No, a volunteer can serve multiple years to earn enough hours for a pass. When hours earned are "cashed in" to receive a pass, the hour count resets to zero.. The exception to this are the initial 100 hours earned and cashed in toward a Corps annual pass. Even when cashed in toward a Corps pass, the hours continue to accumulate until they are cashed in for an America the Beautiful volunteer pass at 250 hours.
