"This bill turns its back on America’s most treasured places and the dedicated public servants who protect them." - Daniel Hart, NPCA's Director of Clean Energy and Climate Policy
Washington, DC – The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee majority recently released its section of the reconciliation bill, doubling down on deep cuts to the National Park Service. The National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) is raising serious concerns about the devastating impact these proposed cuts would have on our national parks and park staff. The bill slashes funding for park staffing at a time when parks are already stretched thin from years of underfunding and staffing reductions. On top of that, the bill promotes expanded oil and gas drilling and greenlights selling off millions of acres of public lands with no public process or environmental review, putting the landscapes around our parks even more at risk.
The proposed reconciliation bill would strip all remaining Inflation Reduction Act funding for the Park Service—roughly $267 million dedicated to rebuilding staffing capacity across park units – an urgent need given the 16.5% cut in park staffing since 2023 due to pressured buyouts, early retirements, deferred resignations and ongoing vacancies across the Park Service. And that’s on top of a 20% reduction to the Park Service’s workforce since 2010. These funds would have allowed parks to hire skilled professionals and seasonal staff to stabilize operations during a very challenging time.
The bill requires the sell-off of millions of acres of public lands across the West—including in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. These aren’t just remote stretches of land. They’re critical to the ongoing protection of national parks, wildlife habitat, clean water sources and public access points to nature. Over 120 national park sites, from Yellowstone to Death Valley, are directly adjacent to lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management or the U.S. Forest Service and could be sold to the highest bidder, threatening vital park ecosystems and robbing communities of public lands that belong to us all.
The bill also includes a provision that would approve the 210-mile Ambler industrial mining road through Gates of the Arctic National Preserve in Northwest Alaska, disrupting America’s largest park landscape. The provision ignores previous rulings on the destructive impact this project would have on Alaska Native communities and subsistence food resources, including caribou and salmon. NPCA is calling on Congress to reverse these cuts before the final vote and to reaffirm its commitment to safeguarding America’s most treasured places.
Statement by Daniel Hart, Director of Clean Energy and Climate Policy for the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA):
“Now more than ever, national parks need real champions in Congress, who are willing to fight for their future. Instead, this bill turns its back on America’s most treasured places and the dedicated public servants who protect them. It undermines our parks, stripping away critical dollars that keep parks open, safe and cared for. And it abandons the rangers, scientists and cultural stewards who make the park experience possible for millions of visitors every year. In the face of unprecedented challenges, this bill is both shortsighted and indefensible.
“This is a fire sale of America’s public lands. With millions of acres on the line, we are needlessly risking landscapes that protect wildlife habitat, provide clean water and recreation access with zero community input or environmental oversight. Once sold, these lands could become luxury resorts, private developments or something else entirely. These lands belong to the American people, not the highest bidder.
“Congress cannot continue to turn a blind eye while our national parks fall deeper into crisis. At a time of record-breaking park visitation and unprecedented staffing shortages, our parks need bold defenders. Senators must step up and restore this critical funding to protect the places Americans love.”
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About the National Parks Conservation Association: Since 1919, the nonpartisan National Parks Conservation Association has been the leading voice in safeguarding our national parks. NPCA and its more than 1.6 million members and supporters work together to protect and preserve our nation’s most iconic and inspirational places for future generations. For more information, visit www.npca.org.
