National Park visitors who cover up President Donald Trump’s face on their 2026 entrance pass may face a fine at park entrances, according to a report.
Trump’s face is set to adorn the America the Beautiful parks pass, alongside an image of George Washington, starting January 1, in a move that has stirred controversy and drummed up legal challenges.
As some park-goers prepared to hide Trump’s face with a sticker or other covering, new “Void if Altered” rules have been implemented this year that could invalidate passes modified in such a manner, SFGate reported after obtaining a copy of the updated guidelines.
The Park Service’s pass policy has long stated that passes are invalid if the signature section of the card is changed. However, this year, visitors with stickers or other coverings on the front of their pass may face fines.
“Defacing the pass in any way, including writing on it or adding stickers or other coverings, is a form of altering the pass,” the policy reads, per SFGate. “Altering a pass can cover up important information and required security features necessary to prevent fraud.”
The new policy states that National Park Service staff can make a judgment call on whether to accept an altered pass, assuming that the its security features, which include a mountain-shaped foil hologram, are still visible, according to the report.
Staff can also ask visitors to remove stickers or charge them for a day pass or a pass replacement.
The Department of the Interior, which the National Park Service falls under, acknowledged its new additions to the “Void if Altered” policy, but told SFGate the changes were made to clarify their existing policy.
“[The changes] provided additional clarification to help avoid confusion and support visitor interactions due to the volume of questions received from staff and visitors,” said Elizabeth Peace, a senior public affairs specialist with the Interior Department.
The change comes as some artists and small businesses were gearing up to sell stickers designed to cover the image on the front of the pass.
The employee who shared the new guidelines with SFGate said they’d never had issues with the passes in the past – including ones with stickers across the front.
“I’ve personally accepted passes that people put stickers on because they just like stickers and it’s never been a problem,” they said. “If you buy a pass from REI, they have a little sticker on it that a lot of people don’t take off. We’ve accepted those and never had a problem.”
The employee also noted that enforcing sticker-free passes could slow down lines to enter parks.
The new park pass featuring Trump’s face also prompted a lawsuit to be filed in December. In the suit, the Center for Biological Diversity argued that the president’s face on the America the Beautiful pass violates federal law governing how pass artwork is chosen.
