FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 22, 2025
Retired National Park Leaders Raise the Alarm Before Start of Summer Travel Season: Cuts to Public Lands Will Impact Californians
California — Today, retired national park leaders are calling attention to how cuts to public lands will impact California residents this summer. Over the last several months, the federal administration has severely reduced national park staff, jeopardizing Californians’ summer vacation plans, potentially compromising public safety, and exposing the state to a greater risk of wildfire.
“This is a crisis,” said Don Neubacher, former superintendent of Yosemite National Park and member of the Executive Council of the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks. “Visitors this summer to our beloved national parks in California should be concerned about the possibility of longer entrance lines, reduced services, closed campgrounds, dirty bathrooms, and overflowing trash bins. After all the chaotic cuts and hiring freezes, the quality experience that visitors have come to expect will be difficult to provide.”
The safety of national park visitors is also a chief concern for the summer. Park rangers, often the first line of defense in emergencies from wildlife encounters to medical rescues, were already spread thin. These latest moves by the administration could mean fewer patrols, slower emergency response times, and reduced preventative maintenance on trails, roads, and infrastructure.
“Because of the administration’s actions, search and rescue and emergency response in our national parks could be compromised,” continued former Superintendent Neubacher. “This is happening at a time when more people than ever before are coming to our national parks.”
The firing of federal land managers also puts California’s national parks at greater risk for wildfire. Temperatures in parks have significantly increased, and many are drying out faster than before. The gutting of the federal workforce that cared for these places means that there are fewer National Park Service employees removing invasive species and reducing fire risk on an ongoing basis. And, when the time comes, there will be fewer people to serve as secondary fire-fighting support in national parks when needed.
Beyond the potential near-term impacts on visitors and public safety, short and long-term impacts on resources in national parks should also be expected.
“The degradation of irreplaceable park resources – and the quality of the visitor experience – may result in frustration and disappointment surrounding our national parks,” said Russell Galipeau, former superintendent of Channel Islands National Park and member of the Executive Council of the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks. “A poor visitor experience not only fails to uphold the mission of the NPS, it will jeopardize the protection of these spaces for the future. In addition, without scientists, researchers, and other natural and cultural resources staff, we will have a hard time keeping up studies that help us understand and protect the iconic species that call our national parks home.”
Key actions by the federal administration that are impacting national parks include:
- The firing of 1,000 National Park Service probationary employees, causing chaos and confusion. After these layoffs in February, Yosemite National Park delayed the availability of campsite reservations, and visitors to the Grand Canyon National Park faced hours-long waits.
- An ongoing hiring freeze on permanent employees and delayed seasonal hiring, and the loss of as much as 13% of National Park Service staff due to buyouts, deferred resignations, and retirement incentives.
- An April 3rd order from the Secretary of the Interior requiring all parks to remain “open and accessible” – an order that ignores the realities of what is needed to safely manage national parks.
- A proposed White House budget with the largest cut ever to the National Park Service. According to the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA), this budget could shutter at least 350 national park sites nationwide, effectively more than 75% of the national park system.
National Park visitation has surged in recent years. A record-breaking 331 million people visited national parks in 2024, information that the National Park Service was told to suppress. About 12,160,000 people visited national parks in California last year, an increase of 7%. California’s Death Valley National Park, which received a record-breaking 1.31 million visitors for the first time in its history, saw the most significant increase in visitors in 2024. Yosemite, Sequoia, and Redwood National Parks each added 200,000 to 350,000 new visitors last year.
Yet, staffing at national parks has not kept pace. Between 2011 and 2023, the National Park Service lost 15% of its workforce due to budget caps. The most recent wave of personnel and funding cuts in February targeted frontline staff and forced land management agencies to eliminate critical seasonal positions ahead of peak visitor season.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re a Republican or a Democrat, Americans love their national parks,” added former Superintendent Galipeau. “We’re supposed to manage these places for the enjoyment of future generations. Your children and their grandchildren should all make memories visiting our parks. But now, that future is in jeopardy.”
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About The Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks
The Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization made up of over 4,100 members, all of whom are current, former, and retired employees or volunteers of the National Park Service (NPS). Together, they have accumulated over 50,000 years of experience caring for America’s most valuable natural and cultural resources. Our members include former NPS directors, deputy and regional directors, superintendents, park rangers (both law enforcement and interpretive), maintenance and administrative professionals, and many other dedicated career professionals. For more information, visit protectnps.org.