National parks in the United States are created by United States Congress legislation as per the National Park Service Organic Act.An Act to establish a National Park Service, and for other purposes. . https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/COMPS-1725/pdf/COMPS-1725.pdf However, most parks are first proposed by members of the public, states, local entities, tribal nations, members of Congress, or even the National Park Service itself.

Criteria for national parks For an area to become a unit of the National Park System, it must possess nationally significant natural, cultural, or recreational resources; be a suitable and feasible addition to the system; and require direct management by the National Park Service (NPS) (rather than protection by the private sector or other governmental agencies).

A proposed area is considered nationally significant if it meets all four of the following standards:

It is an outstanding example of a particular type of resource. It possesses exceptional value or quality in illustrating or interpreting the natural or cultural themes of the heritage of the United States. It offers superlative opportunities for recreation for public use and enjoyment, or for scientific study. It retains a high degree of integrity as a true, accurate, and relatively unspoiled example of the resource.

Members of the United States Congress can authorize the NPS to conduct a special resource study to gather information surrounding potential inclusions into the National Park System. Each special resource study will examine each of the above four criteria individually. However, units of the System are ultimately created by legislation. Proposed parks which have seen legislation put forth in Congress are shaded in green below. Other proposals, including those by the public in the form of documents or editorials in local media, are also included below.

Proposed U.S. national parks

Proposed Name & Area PhotoLocationYearNotesExternal information Adirondack Mountain National Park New York 1967 In 1967 Laurance Rockefeller proposed that a National Park be established in the center of the Adirondack Park.A Report On A Proposed Adirondack Mountain National ParkWhat Would an Adirondack National Park Look Like?, Adirondack Almanac Admiralty Island National Park Alaska 1928, 1947–1977 First proposed in 1928 as a national park protecting the island's brown bears. National Park Service officials inspected Admiralty Island in 1932, 1938 and 1942. The question was raised again in 1947, 1948, 1950, 1955 and 1962. The area was proclaimed Admiralty Island National Monument in 1978 under Forest Service management. "Do Things Right the First Time", NPS administrative history Alaskan Volcanoes National Park Alaska 1948, 1949 Assistant Secretary of the Interior William E. Warne suggested on December 6, 1948 that Mount Shishaldin or another volcano in the Aleutian Islands might merit national park status. Director Newton Drury replied that Shishaldin was inaccessible and seldom visible because of fog and storms, and that Congress had not adequately provided for the large areas already set aside in Alaska. Frank Been, former superintendent of Mount McKinley, hesitated to single out one volcano without further study. In 1949, the director wrote Assistant Secretary Warne that if funds are made available this Service would make a field study of this and other volcanos Suggested Areas Resumes, NPS 1957 Ancient Forest National Park California, Oregon 2009 Inclusion of wilderness and roadless areas of various national forests along coastal California-Oregon border, including Six Rivers National Forest, Klamath National Forest, Rogue River–Siskiyou National Forest, and Trinity National Forest, as a cohesive national park unit.Nativetreesociety.orgTake A Closer Look At Proposed Ancient Forest National Park, National Parks Traveler Apalachicola National Park Florida 1934, 1935, 1940 Covering land between Blountstown and the Georgia state line. Representative Millard Caldwell forwarded a letter in July 1934 from T. D. Branch of Sumatra, Florida suggesting that be set aside to preserve unusual trees, rare plant growths and land formations. The Director wrote to Senator Duncan U. Fletcher in April 1935 that a Civilian Conservation Corps camp had been authorized in Torreya State Forest Park and that preservation of the Torreya tree was therefore adequately provided for; Apalachicola National Forest was established on May 13, 1936. Torreya State Park now covers the best part of the suggested area. Suggested Areas Resumes, NPS 1957 Appalachian National Park Virginia 1913, 1922, 1935 Interest in a park near Norton first appeared in 1913 through resolutions and petitions from civic groups. Representative C. Bascom Slemp introduced two bills in the 67th Congress in 1922 and Representative George C. Peery a third in the 68th. Conservation organizations opposed the bill at the House Public Lands Committee hearing on the grounds that no adequate survey had determined which Appalachian areas were most suitable; the bill was reported favorably but Congress did not act. The controversy led Congress to authorize the survey that ultimately produced Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Shenandoah National Park; the resulting Southern Appalachian National Park Committee, appointed in 1924, also considered and rejected the Linville Gorge–Grandfather Mountain area in North Carolina. Senator Harry F. Byrd introduced a bill in 1935 for a park in the High Knob region, disapproved as inferior to the two parks already established; the area became part of Jefferson National Forest in 1936. Suggested Areas Resumes, NPS 1957Aniakchak National Park & PreserveAlaska1979An earlier version of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (S.222), introduced by Sen. John Durkin included making a Aniakchak National Park & Preserve. It was eventually made Aniakchak National Monument and Preserve. S.222 - Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1979Apostle Islands National ParkWisconsin1930, 2024On May 9, 1930, HR. 8763 was introduced, which would designate an Apostle Islands National Park.

In 2024, legislation was introduced by U.S. Representative Tom Tiffany to rename the national lakeshore as a national park, with Sand Island as a national preserve. Wisconsin's Apostle Islands could become America's newest national park, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Arctic Wilderness National Park Alaska 1952 Arising from the Alaska Recreational Resources Survey, whose investigators focused on the wilderness north of the Brooks Range in the Mount Michelson, Kongakut and Firth River areas. The Sierra Club wrote to Secretary Oscar L. Chapman on September 12, 1952 urging an active study, and other conservation groups followed. The area became the Arctic National Wildlife Range in 1960. Suggested Areas Resumes, NPS 1957"Do Things Right the First Time", NPS administrative history Atchafalaya National Park Louisiana 2014 Local Sierra Club chapter proposal for inclusion of Atchafalaya National Wildlife Refuge, the Sherburne Complex Wildlife Management Area, and the greater basin as a national park. Group: Create big Atchafalaya national parkSierra Club pushes for national park statusBandelier National Park & PreserveNew Mexico2019Proposal by U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich to redesignate Bandelier National Monument as a National Park & Preserve. Heinrich Announces Plan to Establish Bandelier National Park and PreserveBering Land Bridge National ParkAlaska1979An earlier version of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (S.222), introduced by Sen. John Durkin included making a Bering Land Bridge National Park. It was eventually made Bering Land Bridge National Preserve. S.222 - Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1979 Bentsen–Rio Valley National Park Texas 1949 Representative Lloyd Bentsen, whose family had donated the land for the state park of the same name, wrote to the Director on March 16, 1949 after discussing possible national park status with Conrad Wirth. The Director expressed doubt that the area would meet the standards by which sites are judged for inclusion in the National Park System, but promised a field investigation. The area remains Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park. Suggested Areas Resumes, NPS 1957 Breaks of the Sandy National Park Virginia, Kentucky 1935–1939 Wilbur C. Hall, chairman of Virginia's State Committee on Conservation and Development, wrote on March 6, 1935 asking how to apply for federal aid to establish the area as a national park under state maintenance and administration, and was told the proposal should be submitted by the commission. The area was investigated in the summer of 1937. Legislation to establish a Breaks of Sandy National Park was before Congress in 1939. Subsequent action by Kentucky and Virginia led Congress to consent to an interstate compact between the two states, and the Breaks Interstate Park Commission was established to acquire the land. Legislation, The Regional Review, NPS Region One, February 1939Suggested Areas Resumes, NPS 1957 Big Horn Canyon National Park Wyoming, Montana 1923, 1934 First investigated in 1923 by the National Parks Committee of the National Parks Association; despite a favorable recommendation the Service did not approve it. Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area was established in 1966. Suggested Areas Resumes, NPS 1957Big Thicket National ParkTexas1973On January 11, 1973, S.314 was introduced by Senator Lloyd Bentsen, which would designate a Big Thicket National Park.