The urgent need for Congress to renew critical funding for South Dakota’s national parks 

Badlands National Park is home to some of America’s most iconic landscapes, a masterpiece of the American West. Yet, our stewardship of this national wonder risks falling behind unless Congress — including the Senate under our very own Majority Leader John Thune — reauthorizes critical funding that helps keep our national parks and public lands safe, accessible and thriving.

At Badlands National Park, for more than two decades, staff were forced to operate out of a collection of deteriorating, temporary trailers that had long outlived their intended lifespan. And down the road, Cedar Pass Lodge, which serves as the primary base camp for more than a million visitors each year, suffered from severe electrical, mechanical and plumbing failures.

Fortunately, Badlands National Park is one of the beneficiaries of the National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund (LRF), created by the Great American Outdoors Act of 2020 to address critical infrastructure needs like these across our national parks. In its first five years, the LRF tackled nearly 400 priority projects in national parks and public lands across all 50 states, at no cost to the taxpayer.

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But in September 2025 the LRF expired. Without swift, bipartisan congressional action to renew this investment, the progress we’ve made will stall. Urgent repair projects will be shelved, construction costs will multiply, and the visitor experience will inevitably degrade as facilities fall into disrepair and become less safe.

The $15 million LRF investment for Badlands National Park contributes to real, long-lasting success, resulting in a permanent, appropriately sized headquarters for park staff and a rehabilitated visitor center. This project also addressed deferred maintenance in our national parks, helping reduce backlogs from ballooning further and ensuring long-term preservation of key visitor-facing structures.

The LRF has invested a total of $134.1 million in essential infrastructure projects across South Dakota — redeveloping visitor walkways to manage overcrowding at Mount Rushmore, restoring a historic Civilian Conservation Corps log cabin at Jewel Cave National Monument, and rebuilding flood-damaged trails and public boat ramps at Lake Andes National Wildlife Refuge, to name a few.

At the parks, the benefits are clear. But failing to renew the LRF’s funding soon is also a direct threat to the larger South Dakota economy. In 2024 alone, South Dakota’s national parks welcomed 3.9 million visitors who generated over $525 million in local spending and supported roughly 5,200 jobs. Maintaining our parks helps sustain the South Dakota communities and local businesses that rely on this thriving ecosystem and keep our state strong.

As we approach the 250th anniversary of American independence, the duty to steward these national treasures for future generations has never felt more urgent. Recently, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee unanimously approved the America the Beautiful Act, cosponsored by 64 bipartisan senators, to renew the LRF. The House of Representatives is also considering the Great American Outdoors Act 250 – bipartisan legislation to reauthorize this common-sense support for our parks and public lands.

With this legislation, Senator Thune and the Senate can reaffirm our collective promise to the Badlands, Mount Rushmore and the public lands across South Dakota, ensuring they remain magnificent and welcoming for America’s next 250 years.