From the Washington Times: Suggestions for a friendlier National Park Service

No "Barrycades" at Capitol Reef
National Park in Utah

The partial government shutdown is over and the in-your-face goonery of the National Park Service appears to have ceased. But as Larry Craig explains in the Washington Times, the NPS needs to alter its way of thinking.

Unfortunately, recent actions of the National Park Service are an intensification of a negative attitude toward people that has been evident for decades. Just ask citizens and local elected officials who have to deal with the agency on a day-to-day basis. We must avoid the notion that everything will be OK after the government shutdown ends. We have an immediate opportunity for positive change — change that reflects the good will of American citizens.

The following are a few suggestions that might keep this from happening again:

First, the Government Accountability Office and Congress should investigate the National Park Service. The key question that GAO's investigators and auditors should ask is this: During the shutdown, did the Park Service spend more money keeping people out of broadly accessible areas such as the national Mall, or normally unpatrolled facilities such as the Mount Vernon parking lots, than they would have normally spent to accommodate visitor use. If the answer is yes, then we have witnessed a clear abuse of power.

Second, states and counties should demand right-of-way agreements with the Park Service to protect access to nonfederal lands where public roads cross Park Service holdings. If the Park Service refuses to negotiate with other governments, Congress should intervene.

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