They don’t know what they don’t know

Much has been written and broadcast recently regarding the impacts of the Trump administration and particularly the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to reduce the size of the federal government workforce. 

While national polls show strong support for increasing the efficiency of the federal government and often for directly reducing the size of its workforce, the indiscriminate firing approach being taken by DOGE threatens to reduce the efficiency it claims to be promoting. 

Their approach also threatens to make unreachable many of the promises the president made locally and nationally while he was running for office.  In addition, the horrific, whipsaw treatment of federal employees (one day they are working, the next they are fired and the next they are hastily rehired when the administration realizes it goofed) is anything but efficient.  One can only conclude the following from the bumper sticker level of thinking in their approach; they don’t know what they don’t know, and they don’t care what they don’t know! As residents of the Flathead Valley we do care about our public lands, we care about our recreational opportunities, we care about our local and state economy, our local businesses and the millions of visitors that will come to the Flathead.

As past Glacier National Park Superintendent and Flathead National Forest Supervisor we would like to highlight some of the effects these broad decisions will have on the quality of life, economic wellbeing, and health and safety of local citizens as well as the visitors to our area upon which so many livelihoods depend. 

First, we emphatically support the promotion of efficient, cost-effective government and believe it can be accomplished in a thoughtful manner. This then is a plea for thoughtfulness rather than inefficient chaos.  

President Trump promised an improved economy and that was a major reason many voted for him. DOGE doesn’t know or doesn’t care that the Flathead Valley is hugely dependent on visitors to the area for its economic well-being.  Recreationists come from all over the world to visit our parks and forests, while locals enjoy recreating daily and spend money in local businesses. Total spending by visitors to the Flathead National Forest is about $45 million annually while the park accounts for over $400 million of direct visitor spending in the state.

They also don’t seem to know that many of the permanent staff that was recently dismissed were front-line employees like field technicians and trail crew that are directly responsible for providing access, protection, and public safety for all visitors.  

Whether you’re a hiker, a biker, a hunter or a fisher you will be impacted by trails that are not cleared, campfires that are not put out, and the emergency response that won’t be available.   Destination visitors may decide to delay or defer their visits due to the uncertainties around park operations and forest access.  Recent dismissals will also reduce the availability of front-line field staff for emergency response and search and rescue which will place additional burdens on our local communities.  

From our experience, cutting these roles will not promote the President’s promised economic recovery and instead will result in greater economic losses to our community and state.

President Trump promised increased timber harvest on National Forest Lands.  Many local mills, dependent on federal timber, and their employees supported him on that basis.  The timber industry remains an important local employer in the Flathead Valley as it does in many rural communities around national forests.  They don’t appear to know or understand that planning, preparing and implementing timber sales on federal lands requires a skilled workforce.  

Those skills take time to develop and have been in short supply for years particularly in smaller communities where many forests are located. By removing many of the newer employees who make timber sales possible, DOGE has effectively cut that work off at the knees.  

The recent fires in Los Angeles have drawn attention worldwide to the importance of wildland firefighting efforts. During his campaign President Trump promised Americans we’d be safer if he were elected.  Firefighting, disaster relief and search and rescue are all key components of our public safety. In addition to protecting natural resources, these efforts have saved many lives over the years. 

To its credit, the administration promised that firefighter and public safety positions would not be cut during the DOGE efforts. DOGE clearly did not do their homework and learn about our agency’s responsibilities, capabilities and the efficiencies that as managers we had already put in place. 

They don’t know and didn’t bother to learn that many of the front-line field staff that were dismissed were also highly trained to fill critical crew and overhead positions for firefighting efforts, aid in search and rescue efforts, help find avalanche victims or assist with disaster relief around the country.   

These people may not have firefighting or law enforcement in their job title, they are biologists, campground staff, field technicians, or even clerical staff, but they are the militia that our agency depends upon when the need arises. 

So, what can you do? Impacts from recent dismissals and delays of seasonal hiring will be felt as soon as the visitor season commences. Depending upon how the rest of winter treats us, opening the Going to-the- Sun Road, clearing trails, opening backcountry sites and facilities and preparing visitor centers may be delayed. 

Other impacts may not be noticeable until later in the season or even further out. If you have immediate concerns; or as your use of the park or forest are negatively impacted by the workforce decisions being made, if your business is hurt by reduced use of  the forest or in the park you can write or call your Montana delegation in Washington and make your voice heard in other public forums.  

Let them know what the DOGE did not know and be specific about the impact on you or your business.  Support a more thoughtful, less chaotic approach that accounts for the value of public lands in Montana and let your voice be heard.

Chip Weber retired in 2020 as supervisor of the Flathead National Forest.  Jeff Mow is currently serving with the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks and retired in 2022 as superintendent of Glacier National Park.