Who pays for rescues? We do! My wife and I pay an annual fee of $280 or $140/year per person for federal park access. Those fees are collected through the parks pass (~$140/car) and the back-country wildness pass ($70/person). That is a significant chunk of change and much higher than the Brits or German’s pay for their global back-country rescue insurance that is included in their Alpine Club membership fees.
Are tax payers paying for rescues? In provincial parks yes, in federal parks no one knows, but user fees are large and should be enough to cover rescues.
