If you’re driving around Tucson or Phoenix, you might notice new billboards highlighting cuts that were made to Saguaro National Park.
The billboards are part of a nationwide campaign highlighting the reduced services that have resulted from cuts made by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency to the National Park Service such as reduced visitor center hours, trail closures, less trash pickup or other maintenance procedures.
Faiz Shakir, executive director of More Perfect Union, the group behind the campaign, said that he wanted to highlight the essential services provided by Park Service staff that often goes unnoticed.
“But are essential to a lot of people’s experience of having a good, pleasurable time at a national park,” Shakir said.
He also wanted to inform people there is a reason for reduced services.
“We want to urge people to make sure they’re thinking about this being an unnecessary cut of essential government services,” Shakir said.
Shakir added that he hopes people are able to question their own assumptions of government spending and how cuts impact people’s lives.
The campaign includes 300 billboards covering 40 national parks and will be visible for four weeks.
10 are in Arizona.
Saguaro National Park has returned to normal visitor hours following court orders that restored the employment of laid off federal workers back in March.
