President Trump moved to drastically shrink the Presidio Trust, the federal agency that oversees the Presidio of San Francisco, a national park at the base of the Golden Gate Bridge and one of the city’s most cherished public spaces, in an executive order issued Wednesday evening.
The order, which calls for “dramatically” reducing the size of the federal government, said the Presidio Trust was an “unnecessary governmental entity.” The order also targeted three other agencies — the Inter-American Foundation, the United States African Development Foundation and the United States Institute of Peace — by requiring them to reduce their work and personnel “to the minimum presence and function required by law.”
The Presidio Trust was established by Congress in 1996 to help oversee the Presidio, a 1,500-acre former military base that today includes hiking trails, museums, schools, campgrounds, restaurants, a golf course and a hotel, according to its website. The National Park Service and the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, a nonprofit group, also help to oversee the park.
The trust is led by a board of directors — six of whom are appointed by the president — and employs a staff of ecologists, building stewards, utility workers, tech professionals and others.
It wasn’t immediately clear what effect the executive order would have on the park. The Presidio Trust did not immediately respond to a request for comment early Thursday.
Nancy Pelosi, the former speaker of the House and a frequent critic of Mr. Trump’s, played a central role in the creation of the trust, and the park is in her district. Ms. Pelosi’s office told The San Francisco Standard that it was reviewing the order.
“In 1996, the Presidio Trust Act was passed in a bipartisan way when Republicans held the majority in Congress, and has retained bipartisan support ever since,” Ms. Pelosi’s office said. “The Presidio Trust is statutory and it has been protected from assaults over time by its statutory strength.”
Three years ago, Ms. Pelosi helped secure $200 million from the Interior Department for maintenance and climate-related upgrades at the park. The money was part of the Inflation Reduction Act passed by Congress and signed into law by President Joseph R. Biden Jr. in 2022.
Some Republicans, however, want the money returned. Rescinding the funds for the Presidio was included on a 50-page list of ideas circulated by top Republicans as they looked for ways to cover the cost of a tax cut and a bill to crack down on immigration.
The move to weaken the Presidio Trust and the three other government agencies is the latest in President Trump’s effort to shrink government spending, including foreign aid.
The Inter-American Foundation is an independent agency created by Congress in 1969 to fund development projects in Latin America and the Caribbean. The United States African Development Foundation, created in 1980, provides grants to community groups and small enterprises that help marginalized groups in Africa. And the United States Institute of Peace, established in 1984, works to prevent deadly conflict abroad and broker peace deals.
Mr. Trump’s executive order states that the heads of each agency must submit a report to the director of the Office of Management and Budget within two weeks to confirm their compliance.
