Doug Burgum Raids National Park Fees for Donald Trump’s Political Events and Vanity Projects
Internal Documents Reveal $90 Million in Park Fees Diverted By Burgum
HELENA, MT – New reporting has revealed that Interior Secretary Doug Burgum has diverted at least $90 million in national park entry fees away from Yellowstone, Yosemite, and dozens of other parks to fund Donald Trump’s July 4th MAGA rally and D.C. vanity projects. That includes a $1.6 million fireworks display — more than five times the usual cost — and $76 million to repair D.C. fountains, while the national park maintenance backlog stands at $24 billion and growing.
“Doug Burgum is prioritizing Donald Trump over the American people and their national parks,” said Jayson O’Neill, Save Our Parks spokesperson. “When Americans pay their park entrance fees, they expect that money to go back into maintaining the parks they love, not Trump’s costly vanity projects and political events. Burgum has made clear who he serves, and it isn’t the millions of American families who cherish our national parks.”
The documents show that as of late May, the Park Service had approved approximately $105 million in fee money for the D.C. region in fiscal year 2026, compared to just $27 million for all other parks combined. Meanwhile, Congress allowed $1.9 billion in annual maintenance funding to expire last year, and reauthorization remains stalled.
This misallocation of entrance fees by Burgum is part of his fail-by-design plan, consistent with Trump’s Project 2025, to push for the sell off of public lands and the privatization of national parks. Burgum established Trump’s political Freedom 250 pay-to-play scheme using the National Parks Foundation. The foundation, which is refusing to disclose donations related to Freedom 250, was established by Congress in 1967 to generate private support and build ‘strategic partnerships to protect and enhance America’s national parks for present and future generations.’ Burgum turned it into a clearing house to funnel donations to Trump’s politicization of America’s 250th anniversary — refusing to be transparent about it and what donors are getting in return.
To speak with Save Our Parks spokesperson Jayson O’Neill, email jayson@focalpointstrategygroup.com.
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