"The administration’s relentless attacks are crushing the Park Service...Who will care for our national parks if they keep pushing out staff?" - Kristen Brengel, NPCA's SVP of Government Affairs
Washington, DC – Today, the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) has learned that another buyout program was offered to National Park Service employees through an internal memo. Below is a statement by Kristen Brengel, SVP of Government Affairs for the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA), responding to the administration’s Deferred Resignation Retirement Program, similar to the previous “Fork in the Road” buyout offers. The administration’s email, which was sent to all federal employees, gives staff until midnight on April 9th to resign. This buyout offer comes on the heels of yesterday’s secretarial order, which forces the Park Service to keep national parks open and accessible, despite national parks being dangerously understaffed and underfunded.
You can download NPCA’s timeline outlining the Trump administration’s Executive Orders, memos and directives currently impacting national parks and park staff here.
Statement by Kristen Brengel, SVP of Government Affairs for the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA):
“Our national parks and park staff have been under attack for months. And now, the administration is pushing another round of buyouts. Peak visitation season is upon us and millions of people are flooding our national parks from Arches to Great Smoky Mountains. Rather than supporting our parks in the middle of their busiest time, the administration continues to pressure and coerce dedicated park staff to resign from their jobs or face more arbitrary firings and mounting barriers to doing their work.
“The administration’s relentless attacks are crushing the Park Service. Park staff are constantly questioning whether they will be able to perform – or even keep – their jobs. Forcing another round of buyouts is yet another reckless action by the administration that will have long-lasting, irreversible impacts on this generation of National Park Service staff. Who will care for our national parks if they keep pushing out staff?”
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About the National Parks Conservation Association: Since 1919, the nonpartisan National Parks Conservation Association has been the leading voice in safeguarding our national parks. NPCA and its more than 1.6 million members and supporters work together to protect and preserve our nation’s most iconic and inspirational places for future generations. For more information, visit www.npca.org.
