Why It Matters

The Trump administration has moved swiftly to implement higher entrance fees at some of the nation's most visited parks, creating friction between policy aims and operational complexity. On July 3, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order 14314 directing the Secretary of the Interior to increase National Park Service fees for nonresidents of the United States. The order requires the NPS to give U.S. residents preferential treatment for permits, lotteries, and other types of recreational access.

A new Congressional Research Service (CRS) report on National Park Service fee increases for international visitors examines the policy's implementation and legislative context. For Congress, the stakes involve competing visions of how to fund park maintenance and manage access, with multiple bills proposing different definitions of who qualifies as a nonresident and where surcharge revenue should flow.

The Big Picture

The administration's fee structure targets 11 national parks: Acadia, Bryce Canyon, Everglades, Glacier, Grand Canyon, Grand Teton, Rocky Mountain, Sequoia & Kings Canyon, Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Zion. Nonresident visitors now pay $250 for a multiagency America the Beautiful pass, compared to $80 for residents, and face an additional $100 per person surcharge on top of the standard $35 entrance fee at these parks. The price increases took effect on January 1.

To enforce the differential pricing, the NPS now requires U.S. residents with America the Beautiful passes to show photo ID at park entrances. For non-pass holders at the 11 affected parks, internal NPS guidance directs staff to verbally ask about U.S. residency. The residency verification procedures have reportedly caused delays at park entrances, according to the CRS report.

Congress has proposed competing legislative approaches. H.R. 9250 would amend the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act to direct NPS to establish entrance fee surcharges for foreign tourists, defined as individuals age 16 and older traveling on B visas or under the Visa Waiver Program, with surcharge revenues deposited in the Legacy Restoration Fund. S. 1547 takes a broader approach, defining nonresident visitors as anyone without lawful permanent resident status or U.S. citizenship, and similarly directing surcharge revenues to the Legacy Restoration Fund. S. 2308 and its House companion, H.R. 4604, would authorize NPS surcharges for both individual park entrance fees and multiagency America the Beautiful passes, with individual park surcharges retained by NPS and pass surcharges going to the Legacy Restoration Fund.

An estimated 31 percent of the 46.4 million international air travelers visiting the United States in 2025 reported visiting national parks and monuments, according to data cited in the report. Total park system recreation visitors in 2025 reached 323.0 million. NPS has not historically collected systematic data on international visitor numbers.

The Bottom Line

The divergence between the administration's executive action and pending congressional proposals reveals an unresolved question about statutory authority and revenue allocation. While Executive Order 14314 directs that revenues be used in accordance with the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act, under H.R. 9250 and S. 1547, surcharge revenues would be deposited in the Legacy Restoration Fund for deferred maintenance of five federal agencies' assets.

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