Source says Glacier lost rangers to DOGE cuts
More numbers have begun to emerge from the Department of Government Efficiency cuts to Glacier National Park.
According to a source who recently viewed a Glacier Park presentation on staffing but who was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter, Glacier is down seven rangers, including a permanent chief ranger, five firefighters and has about 289 seasonal employees this summer, which is down from its typical hiring of about 330 seasonal employees.
The DOGE cuts have come to Glacier in a variety of ways. Some were early retirements, some were a deferred resignation, where an employee could resign now and get paid into September, and others appear to be reductions in force.
All told the permanent and permanent seasonal staffing is down 25%, sources said.
In the case of early retirements, a government hiring freeze has left positions unfilled. The Hungry Horse News knows directly of a supervisory biologist who has left Glacier, as well as its public information officer, the backcountry permit supervisor and the deputy superintendent.
The Park Service declined to comment on the specific cuts.
The cuts come as the park is in its busiest part of the year. May visitation to Glacier set an all-time record, according to Park Service statistics. Visitation was 238,766 visitors, up 13.9%, eclipsing last year’s previous record of 209,556 visitors.