Former Park Superintendents Urge NPS Closures

Forty former National Park Service superintendents wrote to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum on Sept. 26, 2025, urging the Trump administration to close national parks to visitors during any federal government shutdown. The ex‑officials, organized by the Coalition to Protect America's National Parks and the Association of National Park Rangers, argued that parks already face a 24% staff reduction, that an April secretarial order keeping parks open has forced parks to neglect routine maintenance, and that leaving parks open with minimal staff endangers visitors and park resources.