This article was updated on May 14 at 9:05 AM EST to include a response from the Interior Department received after it was originally published on Wednesday, May 13, 2026.
In 2016, the U.S. Congress established the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission, a nonpartisan commission chaired by former U.S. Treasurer Rosie Rios, to plan the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Despite this, the Trump administration founded a private entity, Freedom 250, to plan and oversee the celebrations.
Soon after, reports emerged accusing the Department of the Interior (DOI) of redirecting taxpayer funds to this newly founded entity through the National Park Foundation (NPF), allegedly using Americans’ money for propaganda.
PEER Accuses U.S. Government Of Redirecting Taxpayer NPS Funds To Freedom 250
According to Semafor, in 2025, Congress passed a bill allocating $150 million to the DOI through the National Park Service (NPS) to fund “events, celebrations, and activities surrounding the observance of commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States.”
However, reports suggest that $100 million has been diverted to Freedom 250, the private entity recently established by the Trump administration.
Freedom 250 is now listed as a subsidiary of the NPF, the official nonprofit partner of the NPS, which generates private support and builds partnerships to protect U.S. national parks, as reported by The New York Times.
In February, watchdog group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) requested access to documents related to the DOI’s role in the creation, funding, and operation of Freedom 250; however, the files were never released.
On Monday, May 11, the group filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in Washington, DC, accusing the DOI of “diverting $100 million in taxpayer funds from America250 without congressional approval” and “co-mingling private funds with taxpayer dollars with no oversight or accountability.” In addition, the lawsuit claims that the DOI is using public employees and taxpayer money to promote a private entity and push a partisan agenda.
TheTravel contacted the DOI for comment and was told that “the Department does not comment on ongoing litigation.”
“Under President Donald J. Trump, Americans are experiencing the most transparent administration in our nation’s history. This includes our plans to make America’s 250th anniversary a once in a lifetime celebration, which will allow Americans from all across the country to take part in honoring our nation’s history,” the DOI said in an emailed statement to TheTravel.
The email continued, “The Department of the Interior will continue to ensure our treasured National Park Service sites are prepared to welcome visitors and support the upcoming celebrations, as we build upon our successful efforts to make D.C. Safe and Beautiful, which has transformed our nation’s capital just in time for America’s 250th birthday.”
Commenting on the lawsuit, Tim Whitehouse, PEER’s executive director, said Freedom 250 failed to use America’s 250th anniversary as an occasion to strengthen public trust in democratic institutions. “Freedom 250 is a privately managed slush fund designed to operate with no transparency, no accountability, and no guardrails. It epitomizes what is wrong with politics today. It also continues a pattern of Secretary Doug Burgum dispensing with a variety of legal safeguards to improperly facilitate Trump projects—particularly around the nation’s capital,” Tim Whitehouse said in a statement.
On January 15, PEER sent a letter to DOI Secretary Doug Burgum expressing concern about reports claiming that taxpayer dollars earmarked for America250 were being diverted to Freedom 250.
“We are concerned about reports that indicate taxpayer dollars earmarked for America250 are being diverted to Freedom 250. This reported transfer raises serious concerns that demand clear public answers. The American people are paying for this commemoration. They deserve to know where their money is going—and what it’s being used for,” the letter reads.
About a month later, PEER filed a series of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests for information they claim should have been available to the public. These included:
- Transfer or reprogramming of funds connected to America250 and Freedom 250
- Communications between DOI leadership and Freedom 250 about governance, fundraising, or event planning
- Documents showing whether DOI staff, NPS resources, or NPF infrastructure are being used to support Freedom 250
- Approvals, agreements, or memoranda governing Freedom 250’s relationship with the DOI.
PEER also published a press release stating their intent to make responsive records public as soon as they were received. However, these were never shared with the organization, prompting PEER to sue the DOI. According to Aaron Lloyd, PEER’s senior counsel, the Trump administration is actively trying to hide these files.
“Under Secretary Burgum’s leadership, the Department of the Interior continues to intentionally hide how it is spending taxpayer dollars and using NPS resources […] These FOIA requests are about trying to give the public access to documents the government wants to keep hidden,” Lloyd said in a statement.
This is not the first time PEER has accused the U.S. government of hiding important documents. This organization has already filed several lawsuits against the DOI.
PEER Continues To Accuse DOI Of Lack Of Transparency
On June 6, 2025, PEER submitted a formal request seeking information about Secretarial Order 3429, signed by Doug Burgum on April 17 of the same year. The order transferred 5,000 DOI employees to the Office of the Secretary, marking the agency’s largest reorganization in history.
This was done to “achieve effectiveness, accountability, and cost savings for the American taxpayer.” However, no evidence was ever provided to show that SO 3429 resulted in the promised cost savings. While PEER received access to some files, these were “highly redacted” and “fragmentary” and did not include the requested information.
On April 15, 2026, the DOI sent a letter to PEER admitting there was no documentation detailing the savings generated, or the costs imposed by the agency’s reorganization.
“We have completed our search of the records and have determined that we do not have any records responsive to points 4 [overall cost savings to taxpayers] and 5 [costs imposed by the reorganization],” the letter reads.
More recently, on April 27, PEER published a press release sharing a disclosure filed by a Yellowstone National Park employee accusing the NPS of failing to warn current and former workers about potential lead exposure in some historic park buildings.
PEER’s latest accusations, alleging that American taxpayers’ money has been redirected to Freedom 250, once again raise concerns about DOI’s transparency and accountability. At present, it remains unclear whether the DOI will provide the required documentation, giving American citizens a clear answer about how their money has been used.
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