Interior Secretary Doug Burgum at a Tidal Basin ribbon cutting with National Park Service officials

NPS / Kelsey Graczyk

Composite story

Park advocates mark NPS 110th birthday with Day of Action over staffing cuts

NPCA is staging about 30 events as the Park Service turns 110. Advocates say a quarter of permanent staff is gone; Interior is promoting a fee-free birthday and rejecting the crisis frame.

The National Parks Conservation Association is holding a nationwide Day of Action centered on Aug. 25, 2026, the National Park Service’s 110th birthday, with about 30 events in 20 parks and other sites. Visitors are being asked to thank rangers and petition Congress, President Trump and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to fund parks after NPCA says the agency lost nearly a quarter of its permanent workforce since January 2025. Newsweek and Wonderwall report the petition, February 2025 probationary firings later authorized for reinstatement, and higher fees for international visitors. Interior and the White House are marking National Park Week and a fee-free birthday for U.S. residents and pointing to the Great American Outdoors Act; they do not address the staffing numbers in those birthday messages.

Shared facts

NPCA is holding a nationwide Day of Action centered on Aug. 25, 2026.

National Park Week runs Aug. 22–30, 2026.

NPCA says the National Park Service has lost nearly a quarter of its permanent workforce since January 2025.

The petition asks President Trump and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to protect parks and make a “real investment” in park staff.

Entrance fees are waived on Aug. 25 for U.S. residents at parks that charge them.

Aug. 25, 2026, is the National Park Service’s 110th birthday.

The Day of Action comprises about 30 events in 20 parks or across 20 states and Washington, D.C.

NPCA says the losses include thousands of rangers, maintenance workers and educators.

Park advocates say the loss of experienced scientists, historians, emergency and maintenance staff cannot quickly be reversed.

About 1,000 probationary Park Service employees were fired in February 2025.

Interior and the White House say there are more than 400 national parks and monuments.

The 2026 National Park Week theme is “Celebrate America’s Story.”

National Park Week is tied to President Trump’s Executive Order 14189 on America’s 250th birthday.

Critics object to staffing losses, higher foreign-visitor fees, deregulation and changes to historic-site interpretation.

Trump signed the Great American Outdoors Act in 2020 during his first term.

Interior and NPS invited Americans to visit parks during National Park Week.

Listed activities run from about Aug. 22 through Sept. 1.

2026 is the 250th anniversary of American independence.

Courts later authorized reinstatement of those probationary workers, according to NPCA.

NPCA says the losses were driven mainly by mass terminations, early retirements and deferred resignations.

Parks will host ranger-led programs, tours and family activities during National Park Week.

The America the Beautiful annual pass is $80 for U.S. residents and $250 for nonresidents.

Burgum says GAOA continues to fund repairs to historic sites, roads and visitor facilities.

The 2026 America the Beautiful pass places Trump’s image beside George Washington.

International visitors without an annual pass pay an extra $100 per person at 11 of the most-visited parks.

A March 2025 executive order directed Interior to review monuments, signs and interpretive material and remove content the administration calls disparaging or ideologically divisive.

EO 14189 calls for a grand celebration of American independence on July 4, 2026.

Disputed facts

Sources disagree on whether National Junior Ranger Day is Aug. 22 or Aug. 30, 2026.

Shared opinions

Burgum said national parks belong to the American people and there is no better time to visit during the 250th.

Trump and Burgum call the Great American Outdoors Act among the most significant public-lands investments of the century.

Disputed opinions

None yet.

National Parks Conservation Association

National Park Advocates Unite on August 25 to Show Support for Park Staff and Urge Washington to Defend America’s Legacy

National Parks Conservation Association

23 Aug 2026

Facts

Visitors will be invited to sign thank-you postcards for park staff and petitions urging Congress to fund and protect parks.

At events across the nation, park visitors will be invited to sign postcards thanking park staff and add their names to petitions urging Congress to fund and protect national parks.

"At each of our thirty sites across the country, visitors will be thanking park staff, sending messages of support to Congress, and learning how to join community efforts to protect all our national parks.

fact

An NPCA survey found more than two-thirds of Americans reject the administration’s park-budget cuts.

Visitors can stop by NPCA tables to learn more and take action, then enjoy the parks.

Everyone visiting these parks can stop by NPCA’s tables to learn more and take action before continuing to experience everything the parks have to offer.

Visitors can find NPCA’s tables in the First Amendment Zones at Kenai Fjords National Park, Muir Woods National Monument, Yosemite National Park, Rocky Mountain National Park, Acadia National Park, Assateague Island National Seashore, Glacier National Park, Gateway National Recreation Area, Blue Ridge Parkway, Cuyahoga Valley National Park, James Garfield National Historic Site, Valley Forge National Historical Park, Great Falls Park, North Cascades National Park, Rock Creek Park, Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park, and New River Gorge National Park and Preserve.

We encourage everyone to take a few minutes to visit our tables – and then have a great day in the parks.

fact

An off-park event is park trivia at Old Busthead Brewing in New Baltimore, Virginia.

Opinion

NPCA said the events will showcase broad public support for parks and park staff.

NPCA said park lovers are calling for an end to what it calls devastating attacks on the Park Service.

NPCA said it was created for moments exactly like this.

The National Parks Conservation Association was created for moments exactly like this.

“Parks are unique and beloved, and during this National Park Week, we want to be rooted in place and together with communities to speak up for them.

This Day of Action is an opportunity for all Americans to show that parks bridge differences and close divides.

They are places that inspire us, educate us, and connect us to our history.

We hope this Day of Action builds the public voice and will needed to protect our parks every day and for the long term.”

center · pluralist

Newsweek

National Parks Advocates Plan Day of Action Over Trump Policies

Jordan King

19 Aug 2026

Facts

The petition warns shortages have cut educational programs, weakened science and conservation, and could affect emergency response and visitor safety.

Its petition warns that staffing shortages have forced parks to reduce educational programs, weakened scientific and conservation work and could affect emergency responses and visitor safety.

fact

The administration argues its policies will expand access, raise infrastructure money and balance conservation with growth.

The administration argues that its policies will expand recreational access, generate money for park infrastructure and balance conservation with economic growth.

Burgum argued that this policy ensures that “U.S. taxpayers, who already support the National Park System, continue to enjoy affordable access, while international visitors contribute their fair share to maintaining and improving our parks for future generations.”

Trump officials have promoted increased timber harvesting, expanded domestic energy production and faster permitting while promising to remove what they call burdensome environmental “red tape.”

fact

The action comes amid a wider dispute over Trump’s public-lands approach.

An Interior spokesperson said more than 99% of 2024 contributions by people listing NPCA as employer went to Democrats.

An Interior Department spokesperson told Newsweek that more than 99 percent of contributions during the 2024 election cycle by individuals identifying NPCA as their employer went to Democratic candidates or committees.

attribution · Interior Department spokesperson

NPCA said any such contributions were personal, not from the organization.

NPCA vehemently rejected this, saying any such contributions were made by employees in a personal capacity, not by the organization.

“As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, NPCA does not endorse, oppose or fund candidates for public office,” a spokesperson for the group told Newsweek.

“Individual employees may make political contributions on their own time using their own resources.”

fact

Interior did not provide the data or method, and Newsweek did not independently verify the figure.

The Interior spokesperson cited NPCA’s follows of AOC, CAP, Sunrise and Indivisible as evidence of political leanings.

"If you look at the accounts they are following on X you will see they follow AOC, Center for American Progress, Sunrise Movement, Indivisible (the group who hosted the No Kings rallies), to name a few that show the political leanings of this group.

attribution · Interior Department spokesperson

Opinion

Burgum has said Trump is protecting landscapes while ending “burdensome red tape.”

Burgum has said Trump is protecting the nation’s landscapes while ending “burdensome red tape,” and Interior officials have pointed to continuing investments under the Great American Outdoors Act, which Trump signed during his first term, as evidence of his conservation record.

attribution · Doug Burgum

The Interior spokesperson said any claim that NPCA is nonpartisan is farcical.

Burgum said President Trump’s leadership always puts American families first.

Wonderwall

National park advocates plan nationwide protest against Trump over staffing cuts and funding concerns

Wonderwall.com Editors

21 Aug 2026

Facts

In April 2026 Interior circulated a memo to realign Park Service staff toward visitor-facing roles and again offer deferred resignation and early retirement.

By April 2026, the Department of the Interior circulated a memorandum announcing plans to further realign the Park Service workforce, pushing more employees into visitor-facing roles while again offering deferred resignation and voluntary early retirement.

fact

The FY2027 proposal sought to cut $736 million from the Park Service.

Then, in April, the White House released its fiscal year 2027 budget proposal, seeking to cut $736 million from the National Park Service and again drawing criticism from the National Parks Conservation Association, which said the reduction would affect more than 430 national park sites nationwide.

fact

That request would cut recreation and preservation from $97 million to $22 million and staff there from 231 to 54.

Funding disputes accompanied the staffing turmoil throughout the year.

Funding disputes accompanied the staffing turmoil throughout the year.

The Trump administration's fiscal year 2026 budget request proposed cutting the National Park Service's operational budget by roughly $897 million and eliminating more than 5,000 Park Service positions.

fact

The Center for Biological Diversity sued over that pass design.

Opinion

Park advocates say the workforce has reached a breaking point.

The August 25 day of action arrived as the latest flashpoint in a dispute that has stretched across nearly two years of the administration, pitting park advocates who say the workforce has reached a breaking point against officials who argue their policies expand access while cutting unnecessary regulation.

left · authoritarian

Officials argue the policies expand access while cutting unnecessary regulation.

The August 25 day of action arrived as the latest flashpoint in a dispute that has stretched across nearly two years of the administration, pitting park advocates who say the workforce has reached a breaking point against officials who argue their policies expand access while cutting unnecessary regulation.

right · pluralist

U.S. Department of the Interior

Celebrate America’s Story During National Park Week

U.S. Department of the Interior

14 Aug 2026

Facts

Bowron said dedicated park employees are ready to welcome visitors during National Park Week.

Opinion

No opinion marked.

The White House

Presidential Message on National Park Week

The White House

24 Aug 2026

Facts

The National Park Service was established on August 25, 1916.

Trump said he signed a Make America Beautiful Again executive order creating a commission on stewardship, access and cutting regulations.

Upon returning to office, I signed the Make America Beautiful Again Executive Order, establishing a commission devoted to promoting voluntary stewardship of our lands, expanding outdoor access, cutting needless regulations, and recovering imperiled species all while growing our economy and protecting the time-honored integrity of our national parks.

attribution · Donald Trump

The commission issued a Make America Beautiful Again report calling for public-private partnerships over the next 250 years.

In response, the Commission issued its Make America Beautiful Again report, calling on the American people, private businesses, and non-profit groups to partner with the federal government and each other to ensure that the next 250 years of our great nation are beautiful, successful, and secure.

fact

Opinion

Trump said America’s national parks stand at the heart of the national story.

America’s vast and wondrous national parks stand at the heart of our story, preserving the lands our ancestors cherished and the unmatched splendor of a continent like no other.

During National Park Week, we celebrate the rich cultural heritage, grandeur, and exceptionalism found in the more than 400 national parks and monuments across our land.

For more than a century, our treasured parks, battlefields, and monuments have stood as hallmarks of the American Spirit, drawing enthusiasts from all walks of life to seek out places of historical significance along with some of the world’s most incredible natural wonders—from coastal landscapes, pristine glacial lakes, and rugged forests to rushing waterfalls, hiking trails, and wild game found nowhere else on Earth.

Under my leadership, we will make America’s Great Outdoors a source of national pride and breathtaking splendor once again, vowing always to defend our God-given heritage through responsible conservation and bold restoration efforts.

attribution · Donald Trump

Trump said his administration is committed to protecting every acre and the cleanest air and water in the world.

My Administration is committed to protecting every acre of our lands and preserving the cleanest air and water in the world.

Together, we will ensure that our majestic national parks endure as a source of adventure, respite, inspiration, and awe for generations to come.

attribution · Donald Trump

National Park Service

National Park Week 2026 Celebrates America’s Story

Office of Communications, U.S. National Park Service

20 Mar 2026

Facts

Bowron said America’s 433 national parks tell the story of the United States.

“America’s 433 national parks tell the story of the United States — from the battlefields where the nation was forged, to the landscapes that shaped our identity, to the historic sites that honor the people and events that built the country,” said National Park Service Comptroller, Exercising the Delegated Authority of the Director, Jessica Bowron.

attribution · Jessica Bowron

Opinion

No opinion marked.