Three weeks into the government shutdown, federal public lands remain accessible with little to no staff, leading to illegal activities and unmaintained facilities. In the absence of federal funding, some states have stepped up to provide funding to some of their most popular outdoor recreation areas.
Colorado Governor Jared Polis announced on Thursday, October 23, that Colorado will provide funds to keep two visitor centers open in Rocky Mountain National Park. The funds will come from the Department of Natural Resources and the Colorado Tourism Office, and will amount to $3,200 per day.
“By taking this action, we are helping our local communities, and allowing visitors continued access into the park to enjoy the breathtaking vistas and activities Rocky Mountain National Park has to offer,” Polis wrote in a statement.
Rocky Mountain National Park recorded over 4.1 million visits in 2023 and 2024. The NPS estimates that in 2024, visitors spent $588 million in local gateway communities around the park, which in turn supported over five thousand jobs, $304 million in labor income, and $862 million in economic output in those gateway communities.
The governor’s office wrote that tourism contributes $28.5 billion to Colorado’s economy and supports over 188,000 jobs across the state.
But advocates are hesitant about partner groups, like local governments and nonprofits, stepping in to pick up trash, or keep visitor centers open.
During a webinar hosted by Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), panelists discussed the role states, local communities, and nonprofits play in public lands stewardship.
Panelist Scott Fitzwilliams, the former forest supervisor of the White River National Forest, which spans from Rifle to Dillon in Colorado, and is the most visited national forest in the country, took the early retirement option offered to federal employees earlier this year.
He said there’s certainly a role for partnerships when it comes to stewarding public lands, especially some of the most popular destinations.
“NGOs, partners, counties have been absolutely vital in many of the public land units across the country,” he said. “Certainly the White River, half of what we got done was through other people, whether it was the Youth Conservation Corps or the Rocky Mountain Youth Corps or counties providing us funds and things like that.”
“I hope that continues, but I don't think the goal should be a replacement for what is a responsibility of the federal government,” he added.
Tracy Coppola, the Colorado program manager for the National Parks Conservation Association, agreed with Fitzwilliams.
“I understand states wanting to step in and maybe fund some of the visitor centers, and I get it, but I'm really worried because like you were saying, Scott, like this is a federal responsibility. There's no substitute,” she said. “I really hope the public doesn't fall for it.”
She said if it looks like it’s ‘business as usual’ at national parks and popular recreation areas, the Trump administration could use that to justify further funding and staffing cuts.
“I worry about anyone other than trained staff operating these places, these fragile ecosystems, (and) cultural resources,” Coppola added.
She also cautioned against leaning too strongly on narratives about the economic benefits of public lands and outdoor recreation.
“Our public lands absolutely are this economic gift, but they're not established for market potential,” she said. “I know that for national parks, that's an added bonus. But they don't exist for just the visitor experience or the dollar. I mean, they exist to tell our full story.”
Coppola was especially concerned that smaller historic sites, which are also managed by the NPS, will suffer more both from the shutdown and ongoing staffing cuts.
More staffing cuts on the way for Interior
A federal judge in California has issued a ruling preventing the Trump administration from laying off more workers while the federal government is shut down.
In court filings, the Department of Interior agreed that it would not go forward with any layoffs involving workers in federal employee unions, several of which are currently suing the government.
In the same documents, officials also submitted a list of its planned layoffs, spanning the Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service, the Fish and Wildlife Service, and others.
The BLM planned to cut almost 12% of its workforce at its Utah state office, along with nearly 50% of the workforce at its National Operations Center in Denver and 33 positions at the Colorado state office.
The National Park Service is looking at cuts across the nation, including 16% of the staff at its Denver Service Center.
There were also plans to cut more than half of the employees working in the U.S. Geological Survey’s Fort Collins Science Center for the Rocky Mountain Region.
The Interior wrote in the court filings that these planned layoffs predated directives by the Trump administration to prepare for reductions in force should a shutdown occur.
During Hickenlooper's panel on public lands, Gunnison County Commissioner Jonathan Houck noted that these staffing cuts have been detrimental to local communities, especially in rural counties like his.
He said that because agencies like the BLM and Forest Service have cut back on seasonal jobs, communities like Crested Butte and Gunnison are losing out on workers in other areas of the community.
“These are often people that work for our school districts or run our ski areas,” he said. “These are guides and outfitters. These are people that have important other parts of our local economic and job base in their portfolio. And their work with the agencies stitches together a full-year employment opportunity.”
“We see these people leaving our communities,” he added. So they might not be with BLM or Forest Service, but it also leaves our school district short. It's bus drivers that aren't here. It's other impacts there.”
Copyright 2025 Rocky Mountain Community Radio. This story was shared via Rocky Mountain Community Radio, a network of public media stations in Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, and New Mexico, including Aspen Public Radio.
