White House Withdraws Nominee to Lead National Park Service

President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the National Park Service is no longer poised to run the agency. The White House issued a notice Monday that it withdrew Scott Socha’s nomination.

Socha, a native of western New York, is the president of the Parks and Resorts division of Delaware North, a multibillion-dollar entertainment and hospitality company that contracts with NPS to provide visitor services in national parks across the U.S.

According to reporting by Associated Press and other outlets, Socha withdrew his nomination for “personal reasons.” The withdrawal was announced before the U.S. Senate held a hearing to consider his suitability for the post. 

Like other federal land-management agencies, the National Park Service has been grappling with seismic administrative changes to its operations ranging from DOGE-led staffing reductions to White House-led directives to remove internal and external material addressing climate change, slavery and the mistreatment of Native Americans.

A White House spokesperson confirmed that Socha’s nomination is no longer active, but didn’t offer additional information on the reason for the withdrawal.

Emily Douce, the acting vice president of government affairs for National Parks Conservation Association, wrote in an emailed statement that the agency would benefit from a steady leader.

“It’s very unfortunate that our parks have gone more than a year without a permanent director at a time when they need strong, steady leadership the most,” Douce said. “The next Park Service Director must undo the damage done to our parks and staff, put the mission first, defend the workforce and stop the erosion of history and science. That’s what our national parks need and the American people deserve.”

Dan Wenk, who served from 2011-2018 as superintendent of Yellowstone National Park, said in a Tuesday afternoon phone call that the director is responsible for establishing priorities for the national park system. In addition to national parks, the agency oversees national monuments, national battlefields, and other federal properties with national, historical or recreational significance. 

Agency-wide directives that would trickle down to individual properties managed by the Park Service, according to Wenk, could range from prioritizing cultural or historical preservation to addressing maintenance backlogs to improving the visitor experience. 

Park Service directors tend to fall in one of two camps, he said: they’re either familiar with the visitor experience component of the agency’s mission, or they come to the job with a conservation- and resource-management resume.

“With [the Trump administration’s] emphasis on visitor use, it was not unexpected that someone would be nominated for the director that came from the visitor-use side,” Wenk said. “I don’t know [Socha] well. I have met him on occasion. I knew that he was a user of parks. I believe that he respected the preservation side of the mission, as well as visitor-use and enjoyment. I personally was not discouraged by his nomination; I thought he could do it, and do it well.”

But for Bill Wade, executive director of the Association of National Parks Rangers, Socha lacked a key qualification for the job. Wade said Socha doesn’t have “substantial conservation and resource management experience,” as required by a law U.S. Congress passed in 2007. 

Wenk and Wade both pointed out that the Trump administration’s 2027 budget includes significant cuts to the Park Service spending, about $1 billion. That kind of a reduction, if approved, would lead to staffing cuts of nearly 30 percent, according to some reports.

“If you want to understand the priorities of any organization, look at their budget,” Wenk said of Trump’s proposal. “Look at where they’re putting money.”

Trump proposed a substantial reduction to NPS during his first term as well, though Congress balked at the president’s plan and instead passed a budget without such drastic cuts.

When the Trump administration announced Socha’s nomination, it emphasized the White House’s preference for someone who would implement “America First initiatives” including “increasing park access for American families, reducing permitting burdens and raising money for conservation projects.”

Cara McGary, who owns Gardiner-based In Our Nature Guiding Services argued in a Tuesday morning phone call that the Park Service needs an ally in Washington D.C. to ensure that businesses like hers can operate effectively and safely.

“As a local business owner that operates in the park, it’s important to me that Yellowstone National Park be staffed appropriately to function,” she said. “We rely so much on the Park Service for maintaining a safe space — be that with regard to the traffic situations, the wildlife situations, what people are doing, the information people have, law enforcement.”

McGary also expressed concern that having someone with such a long history with a park concessionnaire oversee NPS could be a conflict of interest. Socha has been working for Delaware North since 1999.

Marne Hayes, with Business for Montana’s Outdoors, called the withdrawal a “grim reminder” that national parks aren’t being treated like the “critical asset that they are to [Montana’s] $3.4 billion outdoor economy.”

“Our recreation economy in Montana is a major driver of jobs and local revenue, and investing in the core needs of our national parks — like a leader that is ready to step in and take care of these assets — is critical to ensuring that the parks remain foundational to our state’s economy,” Hayes said.

During his first term, President Trump nominated David Vela to lead the National Park Service. Vela at the time had been serving for four years as superintendent of Grand Teton National Park. After that nomination stalled, a series of acting directors — including Vela — led the agency. 

It’s unclear if Trump has alternative plans for the Park Service in the wake of Socha’s withdrawal from consideration. A White House spokesperson declined to answer follow-up questions about next steps for the directorship.