Federal budget cuts scheduled to go into effect Friday will include a 5 percent across the board cut for all 398 of the country’s national parks. That translates into a $623,200 reduction in operating funds for Rocky Mountain National Park.
Spokeswoman Kyle Patterson says park officials are working to identify the best way to absorb those cuts.
She says an immediate result of sequestration will be the closure of the Moraine Park Visitor Center affecting nearly 140,000 annual visitors. The park’s other visitor centers could experience reduced hours of operations and shorter seasons.
Patterson says money would also not be available for non-emergency overtime. She says that could impact their ability to keep Trail Ridge Road, spanning from Estes Park to Grand Lake, open in the event of late spring or early fall snow storms.
Patterson says further specifics as to the impact of the sequestration will be available once it’s determined how long cuts will last.
