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An image of Turret Arch at Arches National Park

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.

0:02 National Parks Traveler introduction
0:12 Episode Intro with Kurt Repanshek
0:52 Beyond the Reef - Tim Heintz & Grant Geissman - Seascapes: A Musical Journey
1:16 The Everglades Foundation
1:28 Potrero Group
1:55 Xplorer Maps
2:16 Interior Federal Credit Union
2:49 Great Smoky Mountains Association
3:17 Episode 248 - Budgetary Blues
20:04 Wabanaki - Nature’s Symphony - The Sounds of Acadia
20:34 NPT Promo
20:46 Yosemite Conservancy
21:07 Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation
21:29 Grand Teton National Park Foundation
21:58 Washington’s National Park Fund
22:31 Friends of Acadia
23:01 Episode 248 - Budgetary Blues Continues
42:41 Wonder Lake - Various Artists - The Spirit of Alaska
43:04 Episode Closing
43:26 Orange Tree Productions
43:58 Splitbeard Productions
44:09 National Parks Traveler footer

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