Montana News

Glacier National Park prepares for impact of budget cuts

Posted: Mar 4, 2013 11:42 AM by MTN News

GLACIER NATIONAL PARK -- Due the federal budget cuts that were initiated on March 1, Glacier National Park could see cuts to staffing, closed campgrounds and the possibility of the Going To The Sun Road not opening on time.

GNP superintendent Kym Hall says they expect a 5% budget reduction for the park over the next several months.

"We're projecting around a $682,000 cut. Couple that with cuts we've received over the last few years, we're at about 9 percent less than what we were in 2010," Hall said.

All of this comes at a time when the number of visitors to the park is near record highs.

Hall says they want to be optimistic that things will run smoothly.

"It's unrealistic to think that we can keep going without the public feeling this at some point. We recognize that communities depend on us for their livelihood, you know a lot of folks have visitor-related services and businesses around here and we certainly get that. We certainly think about what our connection is to the community," Hall said.

Hall hopes that some type of aid will make the cuts less severe, but in the meantime, she and her staff are in the middle of budget discussions.

Reported by; Dax Van Fossen