Made in America: Investing in National Parks for Our Heritage and Our Economy
Made In America Report (3.8 MB)Yellowstone, Gettysburg, the Statue of Liberty and the Flight 93 Memorial are among the many national parks that we, as Americans, own together. Keeping this magnificent collection of places well-managed and open to everyone costs less than 1/13th of one percent of the federal budget—quite a bargain for a park system that inspires visitors from around the world and produces nearly 270,000 private sector jobs across the country.
Yet for the second year in a row, America’s national parks face an erosion of funding necessary to serve the public and protect park resources. And in today’s dollars, the overall appropriation for the National Park Service is nearly $400 million (or 13%) less than it was 10 years ago. Not only will this mean fewer rangers to greet us, help us plan our visits, and respond to emergencies, but it also means that parks won’t be adequately maintained, resources will suffer damage, wildlife will be more vulnerable to poachers, and development threats will increase.
-
Issues
-
Blog Post
How the CCC’s Work Lives On in National Parks
Both beautiful and functional, projects built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s endure at national parks ... and we can thank Frances Perkins for getting the CCC started.
-
Press Release
NPCA response to announcement of Doug Burgum as nominee for Secretary of the Interior
"All our national parks are threatened by...climate change and funding that has not kept pace with rising visitation. We are prepared to face those challenges together, just as we have…
