Targeting DOGE, labor group puts up billboards warning of heat deaths at national parks

LAS VEGAS — On West Bonanza Road near Martin Luther King Boulevard, not far from the glittering casino lights of the Strip, motorists pass a dire message for the upcoming summer tourism season.

LAS VEGAS — On West Bonanza Road near Martin Luther King Boulevard, not far from the glittering casino lights of the Strip, motorists pass a dire message for the upcoming summer tourism season.

A billboard mimicking a postcard from one of the most extreme places on the continent reads: “Greetings from Death Valley National Park,” before a more sinister warning: “Heat deaths rise. Safety staff cut. Made possible by D.O.G.E.”

It’s one of around 300 billboards placed across Arizona, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida by More Perfect Union, a nonprofit labor advocacy organization seeking to bring attention to staffing cuts brought on by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.

The National Parks Conservation Association, an independent advocacy organization, estimates that around 2,500 employees — roughly 13% of the National Park Service’s staff — took buyouts or accepted early retirements or deferred resignations as part of DOGE’s efforts to significantly slash the size of the federal government.

There are concerns that deep cuts across the National Park Service could jeopardize public safety.