Demand to Reinstate NPS and USFS Employees!
Urge Montana’s Congressional Delegation to Intervene with the Trump Administration
The National Park Service and U.S. Forest Service initiated significant workforce reductions on February 14, affecting approximately 3,400 probationary Forest Service employees (about 10% of the agency) and 1,000 National Park Service staff nationwide, with potential additional cuts pending. In our local community, while the full impact remains unclear, major staffing reductions have occurred in the Flathead and Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest trail crews, along with recreation management personnel. These employees are essential for public land access, performing crucial tasks like trail maintenance, bridge upkeep, road and campground operations, firefighting, and emergency response.
These dedicated public servants have expertly managed our natural resources, and their departure will have substantial, immediate, and lasting consequences. The loss affects not only the individuals who have lost their positions and career paths but also raises serious concerns about the future of public land management. Critical questions remain about who will maintain trails, serve visitors, protect wildlife, fight fires, handle emergencies, run educational programs, and carry out the numerous daily responsibilities that keep our public lands accessible and safe.
Our public lands and the professionals who protect and manage them need our support now!
Please contact your Representative and Senators and urge them to work with the Trump Administration to reinstate the positions cut from NPS and Forest Service.
Contact Montana’s Congressional Delegation
Urge them to work with the Trump Administration to reinstate National Park Service and U.S. Forest Service employees. See our suggested comments.
U.S. Senator Steve Daines
Washington, DC Office
320 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510-2604
202-224-2651
https://www.daines.senate.gov/contact/
U.S. Senator Tim Sheehy
Washington, DC Office
G55 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-2644
https://www.sheehy.senate.gov/
U.S. Representative Ryan Zinke
Washington, DC Office
512 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515-2601
202-225-5628
https://zinke.house.gov/address_authentication?form=/contact
U.S. Representative Troy Downing
Washington, DC Office
1529 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
202-225-3211
https://downing.house.gov/address_authentication?form=/contact/email-me
If you do not live in Montana, you can still contact Montana’s Congressional Delegation with your concerns. We encourage you to also contact your personal House or Senate member.
Suggested Comments
Glacier-Two Medicine Alliance suggests you include the following in your comments:
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- Express your love for Glacier National Park, the Badger-Two Medicine, and other national forest lands, as well as for the hardworking public servants of the Park Service and Forest Service who dedicate their careers to serving the American people by managing these special places.
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- Explain that you want to see these treasured places protected and managed well, which requires sufficient staff and adequate resources to do so.
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- Remind them that Glacier National Park, which anticipates over 3 million visitors this year, can’t function effectively without staff. Without these essential workers, the park will have to curtail services, park staff will be overwhelmed (further straining the agency and the park), and park resources will suffer.
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- Remind them that Forest Service staff maintain trails and recreation facilities, manage invasive species, conduct timber or other resource surveys, fight fires, and protect natural and cultural resources. Without sufficient staff, it will be harder for people to access their public lands, and the health of the forest will suffer.
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- Visitors to Glacier or our national forests drive the outdoor recreation economy that our local communities depend on. The layoffs will have socially and economically devastating ripple effects if people don’t visit or have negative experiences.
Thank you for taking action.
Questions? Want more information? Please email Peter Metcalf at peter@glaciertwomedicine.org