Posts by Newspaper Staff

A judge again dismissed a legal challenge to the National Park Service’s no-cash policy at about 28 of the federal agency’s 433 parks.
U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly said the plaintiff, Toby Stover, wasn’t actually hurt by the policy, so she didn’t have standing to sue. Stover attempted to pay cash at the Roosevelt-Vanderbilt National Historic Sites in Hyde Park, New York, but was turned away.
Stover’s attorney, Ray Flores, had asked the judge to toss the NPS’s cashless policy.
“The Court finds, again, that Stover has failed to plausibly allege that she suffered an injury,” the judge wrote, noting he dismissed an earlier version of the case last year.
The judge also said the NPS policy doesn’t prevent entry, but rather requires a different form of payment.
“Even if Stover had plausibly alleged that she planned to return to Hyde Park or any other similar NPS site, any injury flowing from the alleged NPS policy would not be sufficiently concrete to satisfy standing,” he wrote in the order. “That is so because Stover has not alleged that she cannot pay the entrance fee electronically. In fact, she readily admits that she ‘has the necessary means’ to do so. Thus, because the alleged NPS policy Stover challenges does not prevent her from visiting Hyde Park or any other similar NPS site, she has not alleged that it inflicts an injury in fact on her.”
Flores told The Center Square that the plaintiff will appeal to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Kelly dismissed a similar complaint in February, but left an opening for plaintiffs to re-file an amended complaint.
NPS did not immediately respond to questions from The Center Square about the judge’s ruling. The Center Square also reached out to the Department of the Interior, which oversees NPS, for comment.
NPS previously said that it stopped accepting cash at some parks to better steward the funds.
“Reducing cash collections allows the National Park Service to be better stewards of the fees collected from visitors,” according to its website. “Cashless options reduce transaction times at busy entrance stations and decrease the risk of theft. Moving to a cashless system improves accountability and consistency, reduces chances of errors, and maximizes the funding available for critical projects and visitor services.”
The NPS website also notes alternatives.
“Each park that has completed the transition to cashless fee collection has an alternative option for visitors who are not able to pay with a credit or debit card. The specific arrangements vary by park, and park staff onsite will be able to assist,” according to NPS. “Most parks that have converted to cashless fee collection have had an overwhelmingly positive experience.”
In a 2023 news release, NPS explained why Death Valley National Park was going cashless. It said that Death Valley collected $22,000 in cash in 2022. Processing that cash cost the park $40,000, according to the release.
“Cash handling costs include an armored car contract to transport cash and park rangers’ time counting money and processing paperwork,” according to the release. “The transition to cashless payments will allow the NPS to redirect the $40,000 previously spent processing cash to directly benefit park visitors.”
According to NPS, of the more than 400 national parks in the National Park System, 108 charge an entrance fee.

Netflix’s attempt to buy major assets from Warner Bros Discovery is already facing criticism from Republican lawmakers who say the proposed deal could raise significant antitrust concerns.
U.S. Sen. Mike Lee said on X that the reported bid “would raise serious competition questions – perhaps more so than any transaction I’ve seen in about a decade.”
Lee leads the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, which would oversee any congressional review.
U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee, and Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., have also raised early concerns. They say federal regulators should closely examine any deal that could further concentrate power in the streaming and entertainment markets.
“With more than 300 million global subscribers and a vast content library, Netflix currently wields unequaled market power,” Issa wrote in a statement. “Adding both HBO Max’s subscribers and Warner Bros.’ premier content rights would further enhance this position, reportedly pushing the combined entity above a 30 percent share of the streaming market: a threshold traditionally viewed as presumptively problematic under antitrust law.”
Netflix has reportedly hired antitrust attorney Steven Sunshine of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates to guide its bid.
Sunshine has advised on several high-profile mergers over the past decade that faced federal challenges. In multiple cases where he represented the acquiring company, the deals were blocked or later abandoned after intervention from the Department of Justice or the Federal Trade Commission. Those included Visa’s attempted purchase of Plaid, Adobe’s effort to buy Figma, and Sabre’s proposed acquisition of Farelogix.
If Warner Bros Discovery accepts the Netflix offer, the DOJ antitrust division will likely conduct an expansive review, The New York Post reports. The report says DOJ officials are preparing for a “sweeping, multiyear investigation” into the competitive effects of the transaction.
The sale process itself has also drawn criticism.
Paramount Global, which is competing with Netflix for the same Warner Bros assets, sent a letter to Warner Bros Discovery this week questioning whether all bidders are receiving fair treatment.
“It has become increasingly clear, through media reporting and otherwise, that WBD appears to have abandoned the semblance and reality of a fair transaction process, thereby abdicating its duties to stockholders, and embarked on a myopic process with a predetermined outcome that favors a single bidder,” the letter from attorneys at Quinn Emanuel says. “We specifically request and expect this letter will be shared and discussed with the full board of directors of WBD.”
Netflix’s bid would give the company control of one of the largest film and television libraries in the world, along with its massive streaming infrastructure. Lawmakers say those assets would significantly expand Netflix’s reach and raise new questions about market power in a sector already dominated by a powerful few.
Federal regulators have not publicly confirmed any action. However, the early reaction from Republican lawmakers indicates the deal would not move forward without intense scrutiny.