What do you think of when you hear the words “national parks”? Is it the gorgeous landscapes of the Grand Canyon, the rocky coastlines in Acadia, or one of the many majestic creatures that call national parks home? It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the passes used to enter national parks would showcase photographs of just such things. Or at least they used to.
The 2026 “America the Beautiful” national parks pass features none of what makes these places beautiful. Instead, the front of the card features an image of Donald Trump in front of a portrait of George Washington. Safe to say that many parkgoers were disappointed with the changes. Most people were not happy with the idea of starting their visit to one of the US’s many national parks by looking at Trump’s face.
The solution: stickers.
People planned to place stickers over Trump’s face. Some artists, like Jenny McCarty, even began to sell stickers with this intended function, featuring images of nature and animals. However, Trump was not exactly thrilled with this idea. In response, the Department of the Interior decided to update the “Void if Altered” rules to include stickers. In the past, these rules focused mainly on maintaining the readability of areas on the card related to identification, such as the signature line.
The updated policy states that “defacing the pass in any way, including writing on it or adding stickers or other coverings, is a form of altering the pass. Altering a pass can cover up important information and required security features necessary to prevent fraud.” Passholders who use stickers may be asked to remove them, or even forced to pay the entry fee again.
But that hasn’t stopped people from coming up with other creative solutions. For example, artist Mitchell Bowen has created a plastic sleeve that can be placed over the card, featuring stylised paintings of animals and nature that cover Trump and Washington’s faces while allowing the rest of the pass to be seen.
Additionally, the Center for Biological Diversity has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration in regards to Trump’s image being placed on the front of the pass, citing a 2004 federal law that requires that the “main America the Beautiful Pass must feature the winning photo of the National Park Foundation’s annual public lands photo contest.”
