Department of the Interior blocks $25.9 million in National Park Service funding

The Department of the Interior (DOI) has blocked $25.9 million in funding for 140 National Park Service project agreements, citing misalignment with current administration priorities. The DOI stated that the rejected agreements involved groups “actively working against the best interests of the American people and the priorities of this administration,” including efforts to make life more affordable and expand domestic energy production.

In Nevada, the funding cuts amount to approximately $5.4 million, affecting sites such as Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument, and Death Valley National Park. The largest single loss in the region was nearly $3.5 million for cultural resource surveying at Lake Mead.

Yellowstone National Park saw $428,000 in funding blocked for five agreements related to cultural resource management. These projects, involving the Great Basin Institute, were intended for the preservation of archives, manuscripts, oral histories, and the cataloging of bison management records.