However, it said additional money allowed "the monument to finish the full season." Also, it said additional funding "covered the cost of removing dozens of large and highly hazardous trees from high-use public areas."

Interior data showed the park hired three fewer seasonal staff this year but one additional permanent employee. Superintendent Kit Mullen said she was waiting for permission from the Park Service's regional office in Denver before talking to the Deseret Morning News.

Grand Staircase

• Base budget: $800,000 decrease

• Budget with project funding: $300,000 decrease

Not part of the Park Service, this national monument is instead administered and funded by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (another agency within the Interior Department).

Monument Manager Dave Hunsaker said its base budget was down $800,000 this year, but it "made up over $500,000 in special add-on funding for specific initiatives such as sagebrush restoration, etc."

His monument hired six fewer seasonal employees this year and had three fewer permanent employees than in 2003.

"We have one law enforcement ranger position that we may not be able to fill due to budget constraints," he said. "Our science program administrator position is also vacant, and I anticipate filling it within the next six months. The association monument manager has been vacant for some time, and I also anticipate filling it in the next six months."

Tuesday: How politics affects park budgets

---

E-mail: lee@desnews.com