The federal government plans to terminate most employees of a regional National Park Service office that helps coordinate programs around the Chesapeake Bay, such as a network of trails and historic sites including Fort Monroe.
Under the Trump administration’s proposal, six out of 10 positions would be cut at the Chesapeake Bay Watershed office.
Congressional Democrats in the bay region, including all from Virginia and Maryland, signed onto a letter this week urging the administration to reconsider.
“Terminating these employees is a direct attack on the decades-long work to preserve the Chesapeake Bay,” the group wrote.
It was addressed to Russell Vought, director of the Office of Management and Budget, and Doug Burgum, secretary of the Department of Interior, which oversees NPS.
The cuts came to light recently through Interior Department documents produced in an ongoing lawsuit from the American Federation of Government Employees over federal firings during the government shutdown.
The administration’s wider plan would eliminate roughly a quarter of all NPS employees at regional hubs nationwide.
In an emailed statement Thursday, an Interior Department spokesperson said any planned layoffs predate the shutdown.
“Since the start of the current administration, with several court ordered pauses, the Department of the Interior has repeatedly reviewed and evaluated its current workforce and its Departmental needs,” the department stated. “This includes examining efficiencies, reducing redundancies, as well as offering deferred retirement programs and exploring options related to reductions in force.”
The Chesapeake Bay office coordinates the park service’s work across the watershed, which spans 41 million acres, six states and the District of Columbia.
That includes managing the Chesapeake Gateways program, which connects people to natural and cultural sites, such as Fort Monroe, Historic Jamestowne, the James River National Wildlife Refuge and the Mariners’ Museum and Park in Newport News.
The park service supports the network through grants and technical assistance. The Gateways program also led the effort to establish the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail.
Congressman Bobby Scott, a Democrat from Hampton Roads, said he’s concerned that cutting staff will hamper residents’ access.
“These are natural, cultural and historic resources in the region, and we want to make sure that they're properly promoted,” he said.
The long-running Chesapeake Bay cleanup, which has drawn lots of federal investment, is also at an inflection point. Leaders of the multistate restoration effort are currently working to revise its long-term goals.
“I've been working to restore the Chesapeake Bay since I was in the state House of Delegates,” Scott said. “We've made a lot of progress and the Chesapeake Bay office has been part of the coordination of a lot of those efforts. It's a step backwards to decimate that office.”
