For Immediate Release June 3, 2025
Contact: Eden Taylor etaylor@refugeassociation.org
President’s FY2026 Budget Request Deepens Cuts To An Already Gutted National Wildlife Refuge System
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Wildlife Refuge System is at a breaking point, but the President's FY2026 budget proposes funding the Refuge System at just $412 million—a 22% cut from current levels. The last time the Refuge System’s budget was this low was nearly 20 years ago.The FY2010 appropriation adjusted for inflation is over $730 million in today’s dollars —highlighting just how far support has fallen.
“This budget proposal sends a devastating message to the millions of Americans who value their national wildlife refuges," said Desirée Sorenson-Groves, President & CEO of the National Wildlife Refuge Association. “We are facing a moment when entire refuges are without staff, basic operations are falling apart, and habitat management and visitor services are slipping through the cracks. Our Refuge System cannot survive on this level of funding let alone deliver the unique benefits its mission serves to the American people.”
The proposed cut compounds more than a decade of declining investment. The Refuge system had already endured a 30% reduction in staffing over the past 15 years, and since January, it has lost an estimated 25% more, leaving approximately 1,750 full-time equivalent staff to manage what is the largest conservation system in the world.
These most recent losses—driven by retirements, resignations, and positions vacated during prior terminations—come on top of dangerously low staffing levels. Today, over 10% of national wildlife refuges are completely unstaffed, and no single refuge has the resources needed to fully meet its mission.
Adding insult to injury, the administration could seek to terminate another 20% of the workforce of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, including the Refuge System.
“We hope to work with the administration to ensure additional staffing cuts do not occur as the impact of another staff reduction of this magnitude would be catastrophic to the management of the Refuge System,” said Sorenson-Groves.
Managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Wildlife Refuge System spans more than 850 million acres, offering habitats for thousands of wildlife species and outdoor recreation opportunities to over 67 million annual visitors while supporting more than $3.2 billion in economic activity each year.
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As the only nonprofit solely dedicated to advocating on behalf of the National Wildlife Refuge System, the National Wildlife Refuge Association protects, promotes, and enhances America’s wildlife heritage through strategic programs that serve the System and wildlife beyond its boundaries. The organization addresses Refuge System funding, management, and strategic growth, while also promoting programs that maximize the system’s conservation impact.
For all media inquiries and questions, please contact Eden Taylor, Director of Communications & Marketing at etaylor@refugeassociation.org. If you are interested in joining our press list please sign up here.