Latest U.S. Customs And Border Protection Map Returns Border Wall To Big Bend By Kurt Repanshek April 22, 2026 New mapping from U.S. Customs and Border Protection indicates the agency has returned to planning for a physical border wall in parts of Big Bend National Park in Texas despite strong opposition from local communities. The
NPT: Concern Raised Over Length Of Public Comment Periods
Concern Raised Over Length Of Public Comment Periods By Kurt Repanshek, April 12, 2026 National park advocacy groups have expressed concerns over the shifting time periods for public comment on management issues, saying that in the past the public had more time to comment on planning documents. The concern arises in part over the
Interior Department Planning More Changes To National Park Service Staffing
Interior Department Planning More Changes To National Park Service Staffing By Kurt Repanshek April 2, 2026 Another shudder could be about to ripple across the National Park Service workforce, as Interior Department officials are planning to realign employees to place more of them in “visitor‑facing roles.” In a department-wide email sent Thursday evening, Interior Secretary
National Parks Traveler Podcast Episode 367 | Managing Capitol Reef’s Visitors
By Jess Repanshek – March 29th, 2026 Capitol Reef National Park in Utah is one of the Mighty Five, as the state likes to say in its tourism promotions, and while it’s somewhat off the beaten path, visitors are finding it. In 2024, visitation to the park was a record 1.4 million, a number that
NPT: 5th Annual Threatened And Endangered Parks | A Rundown National Park Service
5th Annual Threatened And Endangered Parks A Rundown National Park Service The long-held notion that working in the National Park Service was a promising, even noble, career has been shaken to its core in less than one year. That promise under the Trump administration has been thrown into question, raising uncertainty over the durability of
NPT: National Park Superintendents Ordered To Cap Employee Evaluations
UPDATE | National Park Superintendents Ordered To Cap Employee Evaluations By Kurt Repanshek December 12, 2025 Editor’s note: This is updates with additional details from NPS employees and Interior Department response. Top National Park Service officials, in an apparent violation of federal law, have directed park superintendents to reduce evaluation scores for employees, including themselves.
NPT: Veteran Public Lands Managers Lament Government Shutdown’s Impacts
By Kurt Repanshek October 7, 2025 National parks across the country might appear to be operating largely as usual during the government shutdown, but natural and cultural resources are at risk, National Park Service morale is further being crushed, and family finances are at risk while many politicians look the other way, former agency personnel
NPT: Op-Ed | National Park Service Veterans Lament State Of Agency, Parks
Elaine F. Leslie As retired career federal employees, and as senior managers who strived to protect natural and cultural resources and the visitor experience, we have something to say. And we hope someone in the Department or Administration takes a minute to listen. We’ve been through changes before from one Administration to another. Some
Coalition Speaks on Interior Secretary’s Order for National Parks To Be Open And Accessible
UPDATE | Interior Secretary Orders National Parks To Be Open And Accessible By Kurt Repanshek April 3, 2025 Editor’s note: This includes reaction from the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum late Thursday afternoon ordered that the National Park Service ensure that the National Park System “is properly staffed to support
NPT: Why Our Nation’s Most Vulnerable Species Are At Risk
By Rita Beamish March 29, 2025 President Trump’s zest for rapidly shrinking the government is triggering anxiety about conservation priorities that have been embedded for more than five decades in the country’s national parks and wildlife refuges. Amid the staffing whiplash — chaotic firings and reinstatement of rangers, scientists, and other civil servants — America’s
NPT: One-Thousand National Park Service Staff Fired, Seasonal Hiring Resuming
UPDATE | One-Thousand National Park Service Staff Fired, Seasonal Hiring Resuming By Kurt Repanshek February 14, 2025 Editor’s note: This updates with additional comment from a recently retired National Park Service division chief, a union official, and New Mexico’s congressional delegation. This is a developing story, be sure to check back for more updates. One-thousand
Coalition Members Reflect on Hidden Park Gems
National Parks Traveler Podcast Episode 225 | Hidden National Park Gems By Jess Repanshek – June 4th, 2023 It’s summer. Not officially, but close enough. Many schools have already taken the next few months off, others will soon join the summer break. Summer for many is the peak travel time. Parks are a great
Coalition Shares Comments on Debt Ceiling Legislation
Debt Ceiling Agreement Stands To Be Damaging To National Park Service By Kurt Repanshek – June 1st, 2023 Proposed legislation to lift the nation’s debt ceiling stands to be damaging to the National Park Service if passed in its current form, according to a budget analyst for the National Parks Conservation Association. The agreement
NPT Update: National Parks Proposing To Ban, Significantly Cut Back Commercial Air Tours
By Kurt Repanshek – May 15th, 2023 NPT Editor’s note: This updates with comments from Mike Murray, chair of the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks. Proposed air tour management plans for units of the National Park System released Monday range from a ban on the overflights to greatly reduced numbers of allowed flights,
Coalition Joins NPT for a Conversation About the Debt Ceiling Crisis and National Parks
National Parks Traveler Podcast Episode 222 Debt Ceiling Crisis And The Parks By Jess Repanshek – May 14th, 2023 While spring is slowly giving way to summer in many parts of the country, with visitors gaining more and more access to the National Park System, a stand-off in Washington over the country’s debt ceiling
National Park Air Tour Management Plans In California Challenged In Court
National Park Air Tour Management Plans In California Challenged In Court By NPT Staff – March 21st, 2023 In the ongoing trend of air tour management plans for national parks being called shoddy and insufficient in their crafting, a lawsuit has been filed challenging tour plans for Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Point Reyes National
Member Op-Ed: Checking In On America The Beautiful
Checking In On America The Beautiful By Mike Murray, Chair of the Executive Council of the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks. Two years ago, as part of our preparation for President Biden’s incoming administration, the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks prepared a report that identified recommended changes in direction for our national
Coalition Speaks with NPT About Recreation.gov Fees
Lawsuit Alleges Recreation.Gov Is Cluttered With “Junk Fees,” Seeks Millions In Refunds By Lori Sonken and Kurt Repanshek Recreation.gov, a national portal for accessing recreational activities on federal lands, is cluttered with unauthorized and possibly illegal “junk fees” that potentially generate hundreds of millions of dollars for a government contractor hired to operate the
NPT: Native American Alliance Wants More Say In Managing National Parks
Native American Alliance Wants More Say In Managing National Parks By Kurt Repanshek – January 18th, 2023 A Native American group wants to see Indigenous groups given more say in how national parks are managed and wants “sacred places within the parks” returned to the relevant Native American communities. A petition drive led by the
Coalition Talks Climate Change and National Parks with NPT
Climate Change’s Grip On The National Parks By Kurt Repanshek Water, the universal solvent, is eroding parts of the National Park System. It is slowly overcoming Cape Hatteras National Seashore and has done significant damage to Yellowstone and Death Valley national parks, as well as Mojave National Preserve and Vicksburg National Military Park.
NPT: Top Stories Across the Park System in 2022
When unprecedented flooding roars through a national park, shredding major roads that access that park, it rightfully could be pointed to as the top story in the National Park System. And while Yellowstone National Park was that park, not only the flooding, but the lack of human casualties and rapid recovery, rank that story
NPT: NPS Must Take A Closer Look At Air Tours
Traveler’s View: NPS Must Take A Closer Look At Air Tours By Kurt Repanshek – November 21st, 2022 The National Park Service needs to do environmental studies on air tours/NPS file It’s not an understatement that the National Park Service frequently, if not continually, struggles with its original mandate: to conserve park resources and
Coalition Comments on Low Workplace Satisfaction of NPS Employees
National Park Service Continues To Languish In “Best Places To Work” Survey By Kurt Repanshek – July 15th, 2022 National Park Service employees are not convinced the agency is succeeding with its mission, according to the latest Best Places To Work In The Federal Government rankings. The Park Service stood 406th out of 427
NPT: The National Park System’s Crippling Maintenance Backlog
National Parks Traveler Episode 170 The National Park System’s Crippling Maintenance Backlog By Kurt Repanshek – May 15th, 2022 In today’s podcast, we’re looking out across the National Park System, and at the National Park Service, in advance of the Memorial Day Weekend, the traditional launch to summer, to explore how things are on
Coalition Comments on NPS Deferred Maintenance
UPDATE | National Park System’s Deferred Maintenance Bill Nearly $22 Billion By Kurt Repanshek – May 9th, 2022 Editor’s note: This updates with reaction from the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks. In the roughly three years since the National Park Service under the Trump administration decided it wasn’t helpful to announce the dollar amount