Vacancies in the Department of the Interior may have adversely affected policing of the National Mall, and may have been a factor in recent crimes there, according to an organization for government employees.

The position of assistant secretary for fish, wildlife and parks, which oversees the National Park Service, has been vacant since January, and National Park Service Director Fran Mainella announced her resignation in late July.

In all, eight of the top 16 Interior positions are awaiting nominees or Senate confirmation.

“It’s a yawning vacuum,” said Jeff Ruch, executive director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility.

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Filling leadership positions would have made a difference, Ruch said, during the series of armed robberies this summer on the National Mall.

“One of the problems with the Park Police is they have the lowest level of officers in the last 12 years, and they just had to cancel a graduating class in June because of lack of funds,” he said.

“If you don’t have a high-level advocate, you’re going to lose these bureaucratic budget wars.”

D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton called on the U.S. Capitol Police to patrol the National Mall after the armed robberies and a sexual assault in May and July, claiming the U.S. Park Police was understaffed.

“[Vacancies] are not affecting the Park Police at all,” said Lt. Scott Fear, spokesman for the U.S. Park Police. “Our operations are fully continuing and ongoing.”

Fear said Park Police staffing has remained steady during the last few years. Park Police had 614 sworn officers in 2004 and 621 in 2005.

He added that Park Police has made five arrests in connection with the recent Mall crimes.

Fear said budgetary concerns were partly responsible for canceling a class with fewer than 12 people earlier this summer.

“It’s not something that’s out of the ordinary. We’ve had classes in the past that, due to circumstances, get canceled, and we try to pick the classes up the next fiscal year,” said Fear.

Ruch is concerned the White House won’t put forth nominations for the Interior vacancies before the legislative session ends.

According to National Park Service spokesman David Barna, a nomination could come well before Mainella leaves this fall.

“It wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility that they could nominate and confirm someone before the middle of October,” he said.