WASHINGTON, DC – Yesterday, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) sent a letter to the Secretary of the Interior, Doug Burgum, expressing deep concern about his decision to abruptly fire more than 2,000 employees at the Department of the Interior (DOI). Reporting indicates that these mass layoffs came at the behest of Elon Musk and his “Department of Government Efficiency” directive to fire probationary federal employees. The Senators highlighted the risks that these mass firings could have on the ability of the National Park Service (NPS) to maintain public safety and demanded transparency about the seemingly random criteria NPS used to determine who was fired.
This letter comes on the heels of a Minnesota Star Tribune report that asserted the already short-staffed team at Voyageurs National Park in northern Minnesota is now facing devastating cuts to staff that could impact Park services for visitors. Further, just hours after the Senators’ letter, Republican Senators voted down a Smith- and Klobuchar-backed measure that would have allowed for the restoration of the terminated National Park Service employees.
“Park Rangers keep us safe in some of Minnesota’s most wild and extreme areas, including Voyageurs National Park,” said Sen. Smith. “When your boat gets stranded on a remote lake, it’s the Park Rangers who come to your rescue. Elon Musk just indiscriminately fired Minnesotans who have devoted their careers to maintaining our treasured public lands for future generations and keeping parks open and safe for visitors. Musk doesn’t know the first thing about what Voyageurs National Park means to Minnesotans and he must stop using it to pay for tax breaks going to his billionaire friends and big corporations.”
“We must preserve Voyageurs National Park for generations to come—not put park operations at risk by indiscriminately eliminating Park Rangers who help people on land and water,” said Sen. Klobuchar. “There are ways to run the government more efficiently, but the across-the-board elimination of jobs without regard for the job function or the capability of workers is not how our government should be operating.”
Specifically, the Senators asked for written answers to the following:
1. What was the process NPS used in reviewing staff performance and what criteria were used to determine who was fired?
2. Please share a list of all NPS staff in Minnesota who were fired.
3. Please provide a breakdown of NPS staff in Minnesota who were fired and:
a. were recently promoted
b. are veterans
c. were probationary employees who were previously employed by the federal government immediately prior to their most recent role
d. were probationary employees who were not previously employed by the federal government
4. How did NPS assess the public safety impact of these firings?
5. What is NPS’s plan to maintain the same level of public safety with fewer trained staff? Please be specific.
6. How will these layoffs impact park operations?
7. How will the NPS have enough staff to handle heavy season (May-September) summer visitors in a responsible way when parks are already overrun now?
8. How will reduced staff affect the safety and environmental well-being of Voyageurs?
9. What offices and staff were involved in the determination of these firings?
10. Were decisions made solely by “DOGE” (“Department of Government Efficiency”) staff or Department political appointees?
11. Were career staff consulted about these decisions?
12. Please provide a list of staff involved in meetings and communications about these firings including anyone representing “DOGE”, any career staff and current or former Department political appointees.
You can read the full text of the letter here.
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