Latest news with #Brengel
Yahoo
06-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump administration orders national parks to remain open amid staffing shortages
The Trump administration has issued an order demanding that all national parks remain open amid severe staffing shortages — an action that one conservation group called "reckless and out of touch" as park personnel brace for millions of visitors this summer. "This order is intended to ensure that all national parks and national historic sites, which are managed by the Department of the Interior (Department), remain open and accessible for the benefit and enjoyment of the American people and to ensure that the National Park Service (NPS) will provide the best customer service experience for all visitors," Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum wrote in a memo Thursday. The mandate requires that any closures or reduction in hours at park sites are first reviewed by the National Park Service director and assistant secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks for approval. Read more: National park visits hit record high last year, agency reports as it endures deep cuts The order raised immediate concerns for Kristen Brengel, senior vice president of government affairs for the National Parks Conservation Assn. In a statement, Brengel called the order "yet another attempt by the administration to sideline the expertise of dedicated park staff." The association said any decisions to close park sites are determined by staffing levels, weather and maintenance needs. Requiring officials to first get approval before shuttering services would create an unnecessary network of bureaucracy for those who know the parks best. "It's micromanagement at its worst, creating more red tape when park staff are already stretched dangerously thin and dealing with peak visitation season," Brengel said. "This order is reckless and out of touch." The National Park Service reported a record high of more than 331 million visitors last year to 433 individual park units and 63 national parks, the directive notes. But the order comes after President Trump slashed about 1,000 National Park Service workers this year, with many hundreds more taking buyouts. Read more: Woman dies after being found injured in Yosemite National Park Those reductions have put the popular federal agency — in charge of managing beloved California sites from the Golden Gate National Recreation Area to Joshua Tree and Yosemite National parks — at critically low staffing numbers that will make it exceedingly more difficult to both welcome visitors and maintain the parks. The cuts could mean fewer workers will be available to collect entrance fees, clean toilets or help with search and rescue operations. The Assn. of National Park Rangers has warned that more cuts are possible, and will further hamstring the service's ability to protect the lands and ensure they remain accessible to everyone. "Despite the value and benefit being provided to Americans by national parks, [workers] are systematically being robbed of their abilities to meet their mission," the association's president, Rick Mossman, said in a March statement. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
06-04-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
Trump administration orders national parks to remain open amid staffing shortages
The Trump administration has issued an order demanding that all national parks remain open amid severe staffing shortages — an action that one conservation group called 'reckless and out of touch' as park personnel brace for millions of visitors this summer. 'This order is intended to ensure that all national parks and national historic sites, which are managed by the Department of the Interior (Department), remain open and accessible for the benefit and enjoyment of the American people and to ensure that the National Park Service (NPS) will provide the best customer service experience for all visitors,' Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum wrote in a memo Thursday. The mandate requires that any closures or reduction in hours at park sites are first reviewed by the National Park Service director and assistant secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks for approval. The order raised immediate concerns for Kristen Brengel, senior vice president of government affairs for the National Parks Conservation Assn. In a statement, Brengel called the order 'yet another attempt by the administration to sideline the expertise of dedicated park staff.' The association said any decisions to close park sites are determined by staffing levels, weather and maintenance needs. Requiring officials to first get approval before shuttering services would create an unnecessary network of bureaucracy for those who know the parks best. 'It's micromanagement at its worst, creating more red tape when park staff are already stretched dangerously thin and dealing with peak visitation season,' Brengel said. 'This order is reckless and out of touch.' The National Park Service reported a record high of more than 331 million visitors last year to 433 individual park units and 63 national parks, the directive notes. But the order comes after President Trump slashed about 1,000 National Park Service workers this year, with many hundreds more taking buyouts. Those reductions have put the popular federal agency — in charge of managing beloved California sites from the Golden Gate National Recreation Area to Joshua Tree and Yosemite National parks — at critically low staffing numbers that will make it exceedingly more difficult to both welcome visitors and maintain the parks. The cuts could mean fewer workers will be available to collect entrance fees, clean toilets or help with search and rescue operations. The Assn. of National Park Rangers has warned that more cuts are possible, and will further hamstring the service's ability to protect the lands and ensure they remain accessible to everyone. 'Despite the value and benefit being provided to Americans by national parks, [workers] are systematically being robbed of their abilities to meet their mission,' the association's president, Rick Mossman, said in a March statement.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump cuts called 'slap in face' after national parks report record visitation
The National Park Service announced Thursday that it logged a record 331.9 million recreational visits in 2024. That's an increase of 6.36 million, or 2% from 2023. The numbers reveal that national parks are more popular than ever and do not square with the Trump administration's recent firing of 1,000 short-service NPS employees (those without job protections). Nor do the visitation numbers square with delaying the hiring of seasonal employees that are deemed essential for smooth and safe operations at 63 national parks and 400-plus national park units. Another blow to the NPS, by the Trump administration, is the planned shuttering of 34 building leases around the country. These buildings are used as law enforcement offices, visitor centers, museums, and classrooms. The National Parks Conservation Assn. stated in a news release that national parks were struggling with budgetary issues even before the mass firing on Feb. 14. Kristen Brengel, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs for the NPCA, is quoted: 'The National Park Service just reported the highest visitation in its history, as the administration conducts massive firings and threatens to close visitor centers and public safety facilities. It's a slap in the face to the hundreds of millions of people who explored our parks last year and want to keep going back. Americans love their national parks; these cuts do not have public support.' Brengel predicted that park visitors are likely to find visitor centers closed and ranger programs canceled in some parks. Moreover, she added, visitors could experience slower response times during emergency situations. Besides the parks, communities around the parks, which rely on tourism to survive, could suffer if visitation numbers drop in 2025 because of concerns regarding staffing. Said Brengel: 'Our national parks are beloved and storied places that also support made-in-America jobs and serve as the beating, thriving heart of local and statewide tourism economies. 'Every dollar invested in our national parks provides at least a $15 return on investment. However, devastating mass firings on top of a hiring freeze on vacant positions, the delay of seasonal staff hiring, and the resignation of hundreds of park employees under duress have now been accompanied by the planned termination of park building leases. Together, this threatens to put that beating heart on life support.' For most parks, peak season is just around the corner, beginning in mid-April. This article originally appeared on For The Win: National parks reeling from Trump cuts after banner year in 2024
USA Today
06-03-2025
- Business
- USA Today
Trump cuts called 'slap in face' after national parks report record visitation
Trump cuts called 'slap in face' after national parks report record visitation The National Park Service announced Thursday that it logged a record 331.9 million recreational visits in 2024. That's an increase of 6.36 million, or 2% from 2023. The numbers reveal that national parks are more popular than ever and do not square with the Trump administration's recent firing of 1,000 short-service NPS employees (those without job protections). Nor do the visitation numbers square with delaying the hiring of seasonal employees that are deemed essential for smooth and safe operations at 63 national parks and 400-plus national park units. Another blow to the NPS, by the Trump administration, is the planned shuttering of 34 building leases around the country. These buildings are used as law enforcement offices, visitor centers, museums, and classrooms. The National Parks Conservation Assn. stated in a news release that national parks were struggling with budgetary issues even before the mass firing on Feb. 14. Kristen Brengel, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs for the NPCA, is quoted: 'The National Park Service just reported the highest visitation in its history, as the administration conducts massive firings and threatens to close visitor centers and public safety facilities. It's a slap in the face to the hundreds of millions of people who explored our parks last year and want to keep going back. Americans love their national parks; these cuts do not have public support.' Brengel predicted that park visitors are likely to find visitor centers closed and ranger programs canceled in some parks. Moreover, she added, visitors could experience slower response times during emergency situations. Besides the parks, communities around the parks, which rely on tourism to survive, could suffer if visitation numbers drop in 2025 because of concerns regarding staffing. Said Brengel: 'Our national parks are beloved and storied places that also support made-in-America jobs and serve as the beating, thriving heart of local and statewide tourism economies. 'Every dollar invested in our national parks provides at least a $15 return on investment. However, devastating mass firings on top of a hiring freeze on vacant positions, the delay of seasonal staff hiring, and the resignation of hundreds of park employees under duress have now been accompanied by the planned termination of park building leases. Together, this threatens to put that beating heart on life support.' For most parks, peak season is just around the corner, beginning in mid-April.
New York Times
06-03-2025
- New York Times
National Parks Had a Record Year. Trump Officials Appear to Want It Kept Quiet.
America's national parks saw more than 331 million visits last year, a record. But the Trump administration does not want to call attention to those numbers, according to a National Park Service memo, amid mass firings of rangers and other employees at the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Arches and other popular destinations. The internal memo, issued on Wednesday, said the agency would 'not issue a press release or other proactive communications, including social media posts' regarding the numbers. Individual parks could make public visitor numbers if directly asked for them, it said. The data also was posted online. The Trump administration fired about 1,000 National Park Service employees in February as part of a plan by President Trump and Elon Musk to reduce the size of the federal work force. More than 700 additional park employees also have submitted resignations as part of Mr. Musk's 'fork in the road' offer, and agency directors are required to report their plans for still more cuts to the White House by March 13. 'The National Park Service just reported the highest visitation in its history, as the administration conducts massive firings and threatens to close visitor centers and public safety facilities,' said Kristen Brengel, the senior vice president of government affairs for the National Parks Conservation Association, a nonpartisan group. She said the numbers showed that Americans love national parks and warned that the cuts would mean closed campgrounds and canceled ranger programs and would curtail the ability to conduct search and rescue activities as peak travel season arrives. 'It's a slap in the face to the hundreds of millions of people who explored our parks last year and want to keep going back,' Ms. Brengel said. The Interior Department, which oversees the National Park Service, did not respond to a request for comment. According to the visitor data, the park system saw 331,863,358 visitors last year, the most since record-keeping began in 1904. The previous record of 330 million visits was set in 2016, when the Park Service celebrated its centennial. The most visited were: Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee, with 12.1 million visits; Zion National Park in Utah, with 4.9 million visits; Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona, with 4.9 million visits; Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, Idaho and Montana, with 4.7 million visits; and Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado, with 4.1 million visits. Just days after firing employees and imposing a hiring freeze, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum announced that the Park Service would rehire thousands of workers, albeit as temporary, summer positions. 'Go apply. Apply for a job,' Mr. Burgum said on Fox News. 'We want to make sure that we're giving a great experience for citizens at our national park system.' Ms. Brengel noted that many of the people Mr. Burgum said the agency would hire had been offered jobs in January and then rescinded the offers when the Trump administration issued a hiring freeze. She said agency leaders were 'kidding themselves' if they believed they could rehire those and thousands more seasonal workers in time for the busy season, adding that the agency had also reduced the human resources staff that is responsible for making new hires. The website USA Jobs, which lists open federal government jobs, offered only 197 seasonal Park Service positions as of Thursday.
