Amid staff cuts and budget chaos, more than 700 national park employees take buyout
Source: Los Angeles Times
Amid staff cuts and budget chaos, more than 700 national park employees take buyout
Jack Dolan
Wed, February 26, 2025 at 6:00 AM EST·4 min read
As the Trump administration continues its campaign to slash the federal workforce, more than 700 year-round National Park Service employees have taken buyouts, according to an internal email sent to supervisors late last week.
That brings to at least 1,700 the number of year-round permanent staff members that the service — arguably America's most beloved federal agency — has lost this month. The number equates to roughly 9% of the agency's workforce.
In addition, remaining staff members have been banned from traveling for work purposes — unless it’s to support national security or immigration enforcement — and some staffers have found that the credit cards they use to purchase gas for service vehicles and basic supplies such as toilet paper for the restrooms have been deactivated, according to interviews with Park Service employees and internal documents shared with The Times. It's not clear how long those measures will be in place.
If the cuts aren’t restored, “this just isn’t going to be the same Park Service,” said Kristen Brengel, senior vice president of government affairs for the nonprofit National Parks Conservation Assn. “All of these places are so beautiful and have been so well-protected for so long; continuing to chip away at the staff is illogical.”
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Read more: https://news.yahoo.com/amid-staff-cuts-budget-chaos-110046115.html