Here is what national park services got cut or closed this month

The NPS and multiple national parks are feeling the effects of the federal government cuts.

Feb 24, 2025 - 20:47

Here is what national park services got cut or closed this month

As the Trump administration continues to shrink the federal government, several of the country's 63 national parks have been closing visitor centers, canceling programs, and reducing staff at key services.

On Feb. 14, 3,400 U.S. Forest Service and NPS probationary workers were fired without warning, and thousands of offers for seasonal jobs have either been rescinded or are on pause until further guidance is provided.

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Closed national parks and long lines at entrance gates

In the week that followed, several national parks that charge a vehicle entry fee began seeing bottlenecks at their entrance gates — visitors to the Grand Canyon in Arizona, Yosemite in California, and Zion in Utah have all reported spending what in some cases amounted to several hours waiting for one or two staff members to work through the flow of cars.

In southeastern Arizona, Saguaro National Park announced that its visitors center "will be closed on Mondays until further notice." Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument, in western Colorado Springs, also took to Facebook (META) to say that the "lack of staffing" was forcing it to close down two days a week.

"What we can say for sure is that more than a thousand national park staff have been arbitrarily fired since Friday," Kyle Groetzinger, associate director of communications for the National Parks Conservation Association branch representing the park, told local outlet Tucson.com. "We do not have any reason to believe that this is the last of the cuts, either."

One of the country's most popular national parks to visit during the summer months, Yosemite has put off accepting reservations for both regular entries and camping spots as it waits for further guidance from the administration.

NPS to visitors: 'We recognize the importance of providing clarity'

"We recognize the importance of providing clarity on that system as soon as possible to accommodate peak summer season travel planning," the national park in central California currently states on its website.

More on national parks:

Both regular visitors and lawmakers have been warning that such service cuts and delays will be much more commonplace as the weather turns warmer and we reach the peak park-visiting period.

Western national parks like Cascades, Mount Rainier and Olympic also reported losing six employees each. Visitors to these parks slow down significantly during the winter period and several of the employees let go were already in the process of preparing trails and grounds for the coming spring and summer.

"Without seasonal staff during this peak season, visitor centers may close, bathrooms will be filthy, campgrounds may close, guided tours will be cut back or altogether canceled, emergency response times will drop, and visitor services like safety advice, trail recommendations, and interpretation will be unavailable," a letter that 17 Democratic and Independent lawmakers sent to recently confirmed Interior Secretary Doug Burgum at the end of January reads.

By Feb. 21, the administration moved to reinstate several dozens of the 5,500 employees that were fired amid multiple complaints about crowding and mounting garbage coming from those who recently visited national parks.