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The Trump administration has overhauled the list of free-entry days at national parks for 2026, eliminating fee waivers on Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Juneteenth while adding President Donald Trump’s birthday — June 14, which coincides with Flag Day — as one of several new “resident-only patriotic fee-free days.”
The changes, quietly made by the Department of the Interior last month, mark a striking shift in how the federal government frames public access to national parks. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum’s department also added the Fourth of July weekend and President Theodore Roosevelt’s birthday, while removing longstanding observances such as the Great American Outdoors Act anniversary in August and National Public Lands Day in September.
In a press release outlining higher annual pass prices for nonresidents, the department published the new fee-free dates: President’s Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day/Trump’s birthday, Independence Day weekend, the 110th anniversary of the National Park Service, Constitution Day, Theodore Roosevelt’s birthday and Veteran’s Day.
Only Veteran’s Day overlaps with a previously observed free-entry date. Other traditional fee-free observances — including the first day of National Park Week in April — were dropped altogether.
The Interior Department also quietly narrowed who may enter parks for free. While past announcements emphasized free access for “everyone,” the agency now states that fee-free days “only apply to U.S. citizens and residents,” a departure that officials have not publicly explained.
Representatives for the White House, Interior and the National Park Service did not respond to inquiries Thursday.
Critics say pattern fits broader culture-war agenda
The changes come amid wider criticism that the Trump administration has politicized the nation’s public lands system while rewriting how federal agencies present American history.
The National Park Service faced public backlash earlier this year after removing content about Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad from its website — changes the agency later reversed following national outcry. Administration officials have targeted what they describe as “DEI-related” content across federal agencies, prompting concerns that public history and educational materials are being reshaped along ideological lines.
In a separate example this spring, the Defense Department removed online pages detailing the military service of baseball legend Jackie Robinson before restoring them after public scrutiny.
Free-entry traditions upended
For years, fee-free days were designed to promote universal access, especially for families unable to afford park entry fees. Observances such as MLK Day and Juneteenth — which highlight civil rights, historical injustice and public service — have long been considered central to that mission.
The removal of those dates, paired with the elevation of Trump’s own birthday as a fee-free event, drew immediate criticism from conservation advocates and public historians, who argue the agency is substituting ideological symbolism for inclusive public programming.
The administration has not provided any justification for the shift, leaving open questions about whether the changes reflect a larger effort to recalibrate which histories receive prominence on federal lands.
