Nearly 3 Dozen VA Parks Could Close As Government Shutdown Looms

VIRGINIA — A majority of national parks, including 33 in Virginia, will close to the public on Monday if the federal government is unable to reach a spending deal ahead of its Saturday deadline, the Department of Interior announced Friday.

Speaker Kevin McCarthy announced a dramatic pivot Saturday as he tried to push a 45-day funding bill through the House. A day earlier, McCarthy's plan to keep the federal government temporarily open collapsed as hard-right holdouts rejected his spending package.

The House was preparing for a quick vote Saturday on the plan, but Democrats hit the brakes, seeking time so they could read the 71-page bill.

Should the bill fail and a shutdown occur, the majority of more than 420 national parks in the United States will also be off-limits to the public, the Department of Interior said in a release. About 13,000 of the 19,000 National Park Service workers are also expected to be furloughed, the agency said.

“The public will be encouraged not to visit sites during the period of lapse in appropriations out of consideration for protection of natural and cultural resources, as well as visitor safety,” the Interior Department said in a statement.

In Virginia, a few of the parks that would include are:

• Appomattox Court House Historical Park
• Civil War Defenses of Washington
• Fort Monroe National Monument
• Harpers Ferry National Historical Park
• Prince William Forest Park
• Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts
• Yorktown Battlefield

See a full list of affected national parks online.

Because of the shutdown, visitors should expect many services and facilities at national parks to be closed or largely unavailable. Gates will be locked and visitor centers will be closed, officials said.

Whether tourists can access national parks will depend on size, location and other factors, officials said. Generally, if a site is closed or locked during non-business hours, it will remain that way.

Some publicly accessible places like park roads, lookouts, trails, campgrounds, and open-air memorials will remain open, but there are no guarantees that restrooms or trash will be maintained, officials said.

"Parks will not provide regular road or trail condition updates," officials said. "As a part of their orderly shutdown activities, park staff will post signs as appropriate to notify visitors that services, maintenance or other non-emergency management activities will not be conducted."

In some cases, 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, the department said.

For example, Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs and Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said they will tap state funds to ensure visitors can still enjoy the dramatic depths of the Grand Canyon and the soaring red cliffs of Zion Valley, among other parks.

Interior officials said operations that protect life and property will remain ongoing. This includes law enforcement and emergency personnel, as well as fire suppression services.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.