national parks

Saying that “selling national parks was never on the table,” Utah Sen. Mike Lee is no longer proposing a change to federal legislation that drew heavy criticism from conservation groups, his office said Friday.

A high-ranking official from the U.S. Department of the Interior touched down in Salt Lake City this week to meet behind closed doors with leaders from the state, Utah’s national parks and their surrounding communities.

About 48,000 acres of federally-owned land in Utah are available for coal-mining operations, a big step in the Trump administration’s plan to increase energy production in the country, particularly fossil fuels.

The shutdown of the federal government, which began Wednesday, could have a more visible presence in Montana due to the outsized impact the National Park system has on Montana’s economy.

Legislation follows Trump executive order aimed at increasing revenue for upkeep and preservation of NPS sites; exempts Canadians visiting Glacier.

Studies indicate a different fee structure could rake in tens of millions of additional revenue for national parks facing maintenance backlogs and budget cuts