A new national park pass features Trump. A lawsuit says that’s illegal
An environmental group sued to block a 2026 “America the Beautiful” national park pass featuring President Donald Trump. It alleges that the design violates a 2004 law requiring an annual public photo contest to choose the artwork.
The Center for Biological Diversity says putting Trump’s face on the pass violates rules enacted in the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (FLREA).
The center’s lawsuit says the Department of Agriculture, the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service turned the pass into a partisan political platform for Trump.
The group also challenges a new, higher-priced “nonresident” pass for foreign visitors, saying it also conflicts with the FLREA.
The complaint notes that a photo of Glacier National Park won the public competition for the 2026 pass. Instead, the lawsuit says, officials placed Trump’s headshot on a new “resident” pass and shifted the Glacier image to the new “nonresident” pass.
What’s new about the 2026 passes
The Washington Post reported that the 2026 pass design chosen by the Department of the Interior features images of Trump and the nation’s first president, George Washington, to mark the nation’s 250th anniversary.
The department plans to raise the annual fee for international visitors to $250 starting in January. Previously, they paid the same amount — $80 — charged to U.S. residents.
What the lawsuit says FLREA requires
The lawsuit argues FLREA lists seven pass types and “explicitly precludes” creating others, so new “resident” and “nonresident” versions are unlawful.
The suit also claims that substituting Trump’s image for the contest winner violates the statute and is “arbitrary and capricious” under the Administrative Procedure Act.
How the government is responding
While the Agriculture and Interior departments have not commented on the litigation, the White House dismissed the lawsuit as “frivolous.” A spokesperson told The Post that the environmental group that filed the suit should instead be grateful to Trump for improving park access.
“Instead of filing frivolous lawsuits, this leftist group should be thanking President Trump for enhancing opportunities for Americans to enjoy our beautiful national parks,” White House deputy press secretary Anna Kelly said in a statement.
Context around the program changes
The complaint says the annual contest rules require images taken on federal lands and allow disqualification of highly altered or controversial submissions. The plaintiffs argue a presidential headshot does not meet those requirements.
NBC News noted that the lawsuit follows other changes to park operations to honor Trump, including the removal of Juneteenth and Martin Luther King Jr. Day from the list of fee-free days. Those holidays were replaced on the 2026 calendar by Trump’s birthday, June 14, which is also Flag Day.
What the plaintiffs want the court to do
The suit asks a U.S. District Court judge in Washington, D.C., to declare the agencies in violation of the law, vacate the 2026 pass decisions and enjoin any pass that “unlawfully displays an image of President Trump.”
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Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
