The ongoing government shutdown has severely impacted national parks across the country – leaving park rangers with skeleton crews, halting crucial conservation work, and elevating concerns about park safety.
That has some National Park Service advocates worried that, once the ongoing quarrel in Congress is over, the agency’s staff might shrink, impacting park quality.
Historically, workplace conditions at the National Park Service have been declining over the past decade – with park rangers working more with less.
Some estimates say the agency has lost over 19% of funding and a sizable 16% reduction in staff amid increases in visitation.
Now, the Department of the Interior is looking to cut around 272 NPS jobs in a widespread push to reduce the executive branch’s workforce and save money amidst the government shutdown. A judge has temporarily halted layoffs that already happened or are pending.
“I think morale is the worst it's ever been, to be perfectly honest,” Bob Krumenaker, a representative from the Association of National Park Rangers told KUNM.
Krumenaker is retired, but worked for the National Park Service for 41 years – including two stints in New Mexico and as the superintendent of Big Bend National Park in Texas during President Donald Trump’s first term. He now lives in southern New Mexico.
While Krumenaker is always worried about vandalism during shutdowns, especially like the damage he saw in Texas during the longest federal funding lapse in government history, he’s become more concerned about the Park Service losing the energetic, young, and passionate people who make visiting national parks enjoyable.
“Even when we get over the shutdown, it's going to be really, really difficult to sustain the quality natural and cultural resource management and the quality visitor experience that the people have come to expect of their national park system,” Krumenaker said.
Thanks to the shutdown, Krumenaker said that people will most likely try to find other alternatives to get paid.
“Plus, the erosion of people willing to work for an agency that doesn't show love back to them,” he added.
National parks are a huge economic boon for states like New Mexico, creating a $511 million economic output in 2024 alone, according to a recent report from New Mexico State University.
While a majority of national parks continue to stay open during the shutdown, park facilities that are usually locked at night – such as a majority of Carlsbad Caverns or smaller parks that serve as a house museum – may not be open to the public.
Similarly, staff reductions will likely affect revenue, as collecting park entrance fees has become a major challenge. Revenue generated from gas stations, hotels, restaurants, and recreational services is at the core of community economies around national parks.
Overall, the public overwhelmingly supports the National Park Service. Recent bipartisan polling shows it is one of the most popular federal agencies in America, with an 86% approval rate.
For now, Congress still seems no closer to a solution over a budget stalemate between Republicans and the Democrats, who want to extend Obama-era health care subsidies. Republicans have signaled they are open to health care negotiations, but only after Congress passes a temporary stopgap funding measure to reopen the government.
Currently, this is the second longest shutdown in U.S. history – trailing behind the 35 day shutdown in 2018-19 under the first Trump administration. As of Tuesday, Oct. 21, around 750,000 workers have been furloughed.
