National Park Service seeks visitation feedback amid public land debates

JACKSON — The National Park Service is taking public comment on ways to improve the visitor experience.

The comment period, which closes Oct. 9, was prompted by President Trump’s “Make America Beautiful Again” executive order, which called on Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to improve the infrastructure, services and recreational experiences at national parks. The National Park Service is interested in “more efficient ways to deliver and manage” services, according to the call for comments.

Comments can be left at Bit.ly/3VjEnwS.

The call for comments comes as visitation stresses both Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks — and as Trump administration policies put public lands in the spotlight.

This summer, Grand Teton National Park launched a war on poop, trying to better understand how visitors are using the bathroom appropriately (or inappropriately) at highly trafficked trailheads. At the same time, the Jackson Hole park is trying to better understand how visitation trends exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic will impact future visitation and to get a handle on how its visitors move through the park. Yellowstone, meanwhile, is grappling with funding as it approaches a milestone: 5 million visitors in a year.

Nationally, Trump has praised public lands that have “inspired generations and kindled our Nation’s spirit of exploration” in his “Make America Beautiful Again” executive order.

The president simultaneously signed the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” rescinding $300 million in Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act funding for National Park Service and Bureau of Land Management conservation and staffing. The bill also appropriated $150 million to the Park Service for next year’s celebration of the U.S.’s 250th anniversary.

After an earlier dustup over the threat of selling public lands, the most recent squabble over funding came in response to proposed reauthorization of the Great American Outdoors Act.

Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are poised to reauthorize the legislation.

Meanwhile, layoffs, attrition and a hiring freeze have caused a 24% reduction of staff across NPS, according to the National Parks Conservation Association.

The bill, signed into law during the first Trump presidency, allocated $1.6 billion annually toward deferred maintenance on public lands for five fiscal years. That funding expires at the end of this month, though parks still need to complete over $23 billion in deferred maintenance projects.

At a recent meeting of the House Natural Resources Committee held in Grand Teton National Park, Republicans advocated for increasing efficiency, transparency and accountability over how deferred maintenance dollars are spent. Meanwhile, Democrats used the meeting to advocate for restoring park staffing.