Nov 12, 2023
It was just over a month ago when the federal government was
staring at the possibility of a shutdown. Well, little seemingly
has changed in the ensuing four weeks, other than that the House of
Representatives has a new speaker in Mike Johnson from Louisiana,
and the full chamber has settled on its budget numbers for fiscal
2024…which started back on October 1.
While most national parks likely will close if there is a
government shutdown on November 17, what is more pressing for the
National Park Service is what budget numbers Congress will settle
on for the current fiscal year and whether President Biden will go
along with them.
Our guests today are John Garder, the senior director for budget &
appropriations at the National Parks Conservation Association, and
Mike Murray, a long-time NPS employee and superintendent who now
serves as chair of the Coalition to Protect America’s National
Parks. They’re here to discuss the current situation facing the
Park Service and Park System.