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National Park Service (NPS) employees were instructed late last week to submit their resumes as the Interior department prepares to make more staff reductions.
This comes on the heels of an order signed by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum giving Tyler Hassen, Elon Musk's DOGE operative, complete control of the department's organization and staffing. Hassen does not need to report back to Burgum regarding staffing decisions, giving Hassen the unrestricted authority to fire public land managers, park rangers, wildlife specialists, and more.
National parks are already hurting from Musk's last round of firings, which has left scientists, rangers, and IT staff cleaning campground bathrooms. According to the Resistance Rangers, a group of over 1000 off-duty NPS rangers, these reductions would paralyze the ability of the NPS to carry out its legally mandated mission of conserving the scenery, natural objects, and wildlife of national parks for future generations to enjoy.
Cuts in personnel or funding for the National Park Service will likely be met with opposition from Americans. Eighty-six percent of Westerners approve of the National Park Service, and 75 percent are opposed to cutting funding for public land management agencies.
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They are great recreation drivers. They really drive economic activity in rural parts of the West that don't have a lot of other economic activity going on.”
