National Park Service Level 2 Wilderness Stewardship Policy Review: Director's Order #41
The National Park Service (NPS) seeks public comment on Director's Order #41: Wilderness Stewardship, which provides policy direction for the identification, planning, stewardsh...
The National Park Service (NPS) seeks public comment on Director's Order #41: Wilderness Stewardship, which provides policy direction for the identification, planning, stewardship, and administration of wilderness managed by the NPS. Comments are now being accepted from the public, and local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies.
DATES:
Comments must be received or postmarked on or before 11:59 p.m. ET on August 14, 2026.
ADDRESSES:
The document this notice announces is available for public inspection at
https://www.regulations.gov
in Docket No. NPS-2026-0100. Interested persons should submit comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal:
https://www.regulations.gov.
All comments received will be posted without change to
https://www.regulations.gov,
including any personal information provided.
Instructions:
Comments will not be accepted by fax, email, or in any way other than specified. Comments delivered on external electronic storage devices (flash drives, compact discs, etc.) will not be accepted. Bulk comments in any format (hard copy or electronic) submitted on behalf of others will not be accepted.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Michael Michener, Deputy Associate Director, National Park Service, (202) 513-7080.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The NPS is interested in receiving information and recommendations regarding whether updates, clarifications, or other revisions to existing wilderness stewardship policy may be appropriate. Director's Order #41 is intended only to improve the internal management of the NPS and is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable as law or equity by a party against the United States, its departments, agencies, instrumentalities or entities, its officers or employees, or any other person.
This request for public comment concerns the service wide policy framework that guides how the NPS, plans for, stewards, and administers wilderness across the National Park System. This request for public comment is entirely separate from the opportunity to provide comments on draft NPS wilderness climbing guidance mandated by the EXPLORE Act that also published in today's
Federal Register
. If you wish to submit comments specifically on the draft NPS wilderness climbing guidance, please comment in that docket.
Michael P. Michener,
Deputy Associate Director, Visitor and Resource Protection, National Park Service.