Interior secretary proposes privatizing campgrounds


Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke has proposed privatizing campgrounds on national land, a suggestion that is already receiving backlash from some outdoor enthusiasts. "I think if it were privatized, it would probably become like Disneyland," Shannon Jester, who "spends about six months every year in a tent," told Utah's KOB 4.
Zinke told members of the Recreational Vehicle Industry Association last week that "as the secretary, I don't want to be in the business of running campgrounds. My folks will never be as good as you are." The proposal to privatize campgrounds is part of Zinke's goal to alleviate an $11 billion backlog of maintenance projects, UtahPolicy.com reports.
"We'll be looking at where our employees should be spending their time," Zinke added. "Yes, cleaning the bathrooms. But actually running services, that's something we should be pushing to somebody who's updated and knows the market better."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Campers expressed concern about prices going up if parks are privatized, with Jester noting that private campgrounds cost around twice the price as national parks. Fees for camping on federal lands currently range from about $7 to $50, KOB 4 reports. "Anything that makes visiting our national parks more expensive is not good for America and the American people. Camping on national public lands is and must continue to be an affordable family vacation," Aaron Weiss of the Center for Western Priorities told the Sante Fe New Mexican.
In 2016, America's 331 million park visits generated more than $18 billion.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
August 30 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Saturday’s political cartoons include Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Donald Trump's role reversal and King George III
-
5 bullseye cartoons about the reasons for mass shootings
Cartoons Artists take on gun worship, a price paid, and more
-
Lisa Cook and Trump's battle for control the US Fed
Talking Point The president's attempts to fire one of the Federal Reserve's seven governor is represents 'a stunning escalation' of his attacks on the US central bank
-
New York court tosses Trump's $500M fraud fine
Speed Read A divided appeals court threw out a hefty penalty against President Trump for fraudulently inflating his wealth
-
Trump said to seek government stake in Intel
Speed Read The president and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly discussed the proposal at a recent meeting
-
US to take 15% cut of AI chip sales to China
Speed Read Nvidia and AMD will pay the Trump administration 15% of their revenue from selling artificial intelligence chips to China
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with Disney
Speed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B deal
Speed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance merger
Speed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
Tesla reports plummeting profits
Speed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new high
Speed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year