For the second year in a row, without any public input, the leadership of Rocky Mountain National Park has unfairly, unnecessarily, and undemocratically restricted access to public lands. This is a precursor to the imposition of permanent restrictions on the public's accesses Rocky Mountain National Park.

Unless opposed by the public and our elected officials, this system  will create second-class citizenship for many Americans and deprive them of fair use of natural wonders set aside for the benefit and enjoyment of the public. It will also discriminate based on race and economic status, making it harder for the poor and people of color to enjoy the National Park System. 

This is a fundamental and negative change to the original mission of the National Parks. No science-based justification for this change has been made public.  Rocky Mountain National Park and Yosemite are the only Park's planning a park-wide restriction system that, if approved by the Department of the Interior, will become permanent. 

The decision to restrict public access to public lands has been made behind closed doors, in a non-transparent, undemocratic way, and in the complete absence of a conservation-based or preservation-based, data-driven case. Park leadership has refused to respond to or answer questions about why such radical changes are needed, and needed right now - with no equal public participation or review of scientific data.

If you love the National Parks and believe in their mission of being open and free places of refuge, you must ask the National Park Service to immediately suspend plans for a permanent reservation system until a full public review is held.

To keep Rocky Mountain National Park open to the public (and just for the privileged) we the undersigned ask that:

1. The timed entry reservation system for 2021 be immediately suspended until Park officials respond to all outstanding Freedom of Information Act requests for behind-the-scenes decision with respect to this process.
2. A cancellation of the process under the National Environmental Policy Act that would result in permanent restrictions to National Park access without any scientific case being made, or public consultation or consent that such a process is necessary.
3. A public commitment, in writing, by National Park and Department of Interior officials that all future decisions on public access to public lands will be made transparently, democratically, and with full weight given to the mission of the Park Service to exist for the benefit and enjoyment of the Park, in balance with conservation and preservation goals so that generations to come can enjoy the Park without discrimination or reservation.  

#KeepPublicLandsOpen #ParksforthePeopleNotThePriveleged