For Immediate Release:
Washington, D.C. – The government shutdown, which began on October 1, 2025, has had devastating impacts on America’s public lands and the nonprofit partners that support them. Public Lands Alliance (PLA) calls on our nation’s leaders to come together, find common ground, and work towards a bipartisan solution that will fully reopen our national parks, forests, refuges, monuments, and other public lands without delay.
As the government shutdown continues, America’s public lands — and the communities and companies that depend on them — are increasingly vulnerable to the effects of prolonged inaction. More than $3.9 million of revenue from retail sales and visitor programs through nonprofit partners has been lost through October 16 and will not be recovered, according to a PLA survey.
Additionally, more than 250 employees of these organizations have been laid off, furloughed, or compelled to accept leave without pay through October 21, creating unwarranted financial hardships for them and their families. PLA believes these devastating numbers will continue to rise.
As the shutdown heads into its fourth week, PLA Board of Directors Chair Caroline Ward released the following statement:
“Over time, shutdowns erode trust, weaken conservation progress, and undermine the partnerships that keep America’s public lands accessible, protected, and thriving for future generations. In the absence of federal operations, many nonprofit partners of public lands across the country have worked tirelessly to maintain essential services and protect these shared spaces within the capacity they offer. A prolonged government shutdown places immense strain on the nonprofit partners that support America’s public lands. With parks, forests, refuges, and cultural and historical sites closed or operating without staff, these organizations lose vital visitor revenue, face halted cooperative agreements and grants, and bear the costs of canceled programs without reimbursement.
America’s public lands belong to everyone, and every day the government remains closed, these treasured places — and the people who care for and enjoy them — are put at risk. We urge Congress to come together now to reopen the government and restore the stewardship, access, and stability our public lands and communities deserve.”
Visit PLA's shutdown page for updates regarding the government shutdown and its impacts on the nonprofit partners of America's public lands.
About Public Lands Alliance
Public Lands Alliance (PLA) has been connecting, strengthening, and representing the nonprofit partners of America’s public lands since 1977, in pursuit of a world where public lands are valued, preserved, and enjoyed by all. Its members are nonprofit organizations with formal partnerships with land management agencies to support parks, forests, wildlife refuges, cultural sites, and other public lands sites. PLA members serve over 700 sites nationwide and raise $250 million annually to support those lands.
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