NEW: Interior Secretary Doug Burgum’s Disastrous Budget A Nightmare for America’s National Parks

HELENA, MT — As millions of Americans prepare to visit their favorite national parks this summer, Interior Secretary Burgum and the Trump administration unveiled a disastrous budget proposal that would eliminate nearly 3,000 positions from the National Park Service and slash three-quarters of a billion dollars from the parks’ operations budget. 

These draconian cuts follow Burgum’s costly and disastrous DOGE implementation, which already stripped NPS of nearly a quarter of its workforce and caused severe impacts to national parks across the nation. Burgum previously consolidated power at the Department by transferring some 5,000 Interior positions to his personal office.

“Doug Burgum has been given countless opportunities to show he gives a damn about America’s national parks and public lands, and every time, he makes it abundantly clear that he doesn’t,” said Jayson O’Neill, spokesperson for Save Our Parks. “After already slashing a quarter of the national park workforce, eliminating 10,000 other public lands and resource jobs, and consolidating power under his authority, Burgum is now proposing a disastrous budget that would put thousands more people that manage our parks and public lands out of work. Slashing almost $750 million from America’s park operations means longer entrance lines, heightened safety concerns, and more chaos for visitors if Congress doesn’t act.” 

The proposed budget is straight out of Burgum’s fail-by-design plan to sell off our public lands and privatize our parks — a reality that will get turbocharged if anti-public lands BLM nominee Selloff Steve Pearce and unqualified former private concessionaire executive NPS Director nominee Scott Socha are confirmed by the Senate. It’s up to Congress to stand with the millions of Americans who want to keep our national parks and public lands functioning, accessible, and public.

Burgum’s Disastrous Parks and Public Lands Budget Proposal Include:

• Slashed Interior Department funding by nearly 13% overall  

  • NPS Operations cut by over 25% 

  • Nearly eliminates NPS Recreation (93% reduction) and Historic Preservation (94% reduction)

  • Bureau of Land Management budget for land and resources management slashed by 34%

  • Fish and Wildlife Services funding for resource management down 15%

• Eliminates Interior’s renewable energy program

• Sustains increased Park Police presence in DC 

• Creates new, vague $10 billion slush fund for ‘DC beautification’

To speak with Save Our Parks spokesperson Jayson O’Neill, email jayson@focalpointstrategygroup.com. 

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