Maui parks, refuges back to normal
Business returned to normal at Maui’s national parks and refuges Tuesday after a government shutdown that began at midnight Friday, went through the weekend and into Monday.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary offices in Kihei reopened Tuesday after being closed Monday.
An official said sanctuary employees were unable to comment on the government shutdown. “We’re not authorized to do that,” she said.
The U.S. Veterans Affairs office in Wailuku remained open and was not affected by the shutdown.
The visitor center at the Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge in South Maui was open Tuesday, after having been closed Monday.
During the shutdown, refuge staff members were prohibited from going about their work as federal employees, “including returning phone calls and emails, until further notice,” according to an automated reply from visitor services manager Courtney Brown.
At Haleakala National Park, sunrise viewing resumed as of 3 a.m. Tuesday. As usual, sunrise visitors needed to make reservations.
The federal closures ended after Congress passed a short-term spending bill on Monday afternoon, and President Donald Trump signed it that evening. Some federal workers worry that they could find themselves on furloughs again on Feb. 8 when the temporary measure expires.
J. David Cox, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees, says its 700,000 federal and Washington, D.C., government workers have been exasperated by the inability of Congress and Trump to negotiate a budget.
“We can’t be the ball for the Ping-Pong game,” Cox said.
The three-day shutdown temporarily halted “nonessential” services nationwide.
During the federal closure, Haleakala was closed for the popular sunrise viewing on Sunday and Monday.
Park roads, trails and campgrounds in the Summit and Kipahulu districts remained open to visitors at all other times, but park-provided services were suspended.