Colorado's National Parks May Stay Open

Above, Mesa Verde National Park may stay open if Colorado foots the bill. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Steps are being taken by the state of Colorado to keep its national parks open in the event of a government shutdown.

That is, if the state is willing to foot the bill.

From CPR News:

It looks like Colorado's four National Parks may stay open through a shutdown, even if it means the state ends up footing the bill.

Entrances to national parks will be blocked and thousands of park rangers will be furloughed if Congress doesn’t reach a budget agreement this weekend, the Department of Interior said Friday, with visitors encountering locked gates starting on Monday.

However, the department also noted the director of the National Park Service can enter into non-reimbursable arrangements with state, tribal or local governments, or third parties for donations to fund park operations and keep gates open.

Gov. Jared Polis is taking steps to do that. 

On Thursday, he issued an executive order for the Colorado Department of Natural Resources to develop a plan to keep the parks and other federal land in the state open, and to look for state money to do it with.

The neighboring states of Arizona and Utah are also looking into keeping their national parks open during a government shutdown.

To read more, go here.