I don’t know what type of budget and expenses go into running this park in an ideal scenario, and what the revenue shortfall might be that would require additional taxpayer subsidies, but it seems like the obvious solution here is the ask people using the park to pay for the majority of its operations
Parks do generate a ton of economic activity, but directly capture little of it. Airfare, gas, lodging, meals, retail sales, social media revenue, etc. mostly happen outside the parks. Like the highway system or national defense, they are a national platform that is federally maintained.
All that said, a national park is fundamentally not an economic concept. It satisfies a national desire that is deeper than just making a bit of money. The economic story is just another way of saying that tons of people love the parks.
> 2021 Operating Budget: Approximately $30 million > Park visitors: 3,343,988 (2021)
An entrance pass is $35 (per vehicle) or $20 (per person).
I imagine Yosemite, being one of the most popular National Parks, subsidizes the others.
That said, the National Parks are one of this nation's greatest accomplishments, and would be a bargain at 10x the cost. Trump (or rather his sycophants) would rather see them collapse as further "proof" of government as a failure, and to open the lands up to private resource extraction, like logging, mining and drilling.
Anyone visiting more than one park is almost certainly buying the $80 annual pass (free for military) or lifetime senior pass.
You didn't specify if you thought that detracted from my point, though.
They are just firing people arbitrary and claim fighting bureaucracy and corruption.