To amend the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to optimize conservation through resource prioritization, incentivize wildlife conservation on private lands, provide for greater incentives to recover listed species, create greater transparency and accountability in recovering listed species, streamline the permitting process, eliminate barriers to conservation, and restore congressional intent.
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
IntroducedMr. Westerman (for himself, Ms. Hageman, Mr. Stauber, Mr. Tiffany, …
Primary Purpose
Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to reform species listing procedures, expand state and private landowner participation in conservation, reduce regulatory burdens on federal agency consultations, and increase transparency in ESA-related government spending and litigation.
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Comprehensive reform to limit federal ESA regulatory power by expanding state authority over wildlife management, creating new pathways for private landowners to avoid future ESA restrictions, restricting habitat designations on private land, limiting consultation requirements and litigation costs, and codifying Trump-era regulatory rollbacks."
Likely Beneficiaries
- Private landowners with potential endangered species habitat
- Agriculture and ranching operations
- Oil and gas companies operating on federal lands
- Mining companies
- Timber and forestry industry
- Real estate developers
- State wildlife agencies
- Federal agencies subject to ESA consultations
- Entities that trade in non-native wildlife species
Likely Burden Bearers
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (increased reporting and work plan requirements)
- Environmental advocacy organizations (reduced litigation leverage)
- Endangered and threatened species (reduced protections)
- Conservation biologists and researchers
- Wildlife populations on private lands
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of the Interior (for terrestrial and freshwater species) or Secretary of Commerce (for marine species)
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of the Interior or Secretary of Commerce
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of the Interior or Secretary of Commerce
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of the Interior
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of the Interior or Secretary of Commerce
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of the Interior
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of the Interior
Note: 'The Secretary' generally refers to either Secretary of the Interior (for terrestrial/freshwater species) or Secretary of Commerce (for marine species), depending on the species involved. This dual-secretary authority is inherent to the ESA structure.
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
Includes data submitted to the Secretary by a State, Tribal, or local government.
For consultation purposes, means the condition of the species or its critical habitat in the action area, without consequences from the proposed action, including past and present effects of all actions and existing structures/facilities.
The net effect of an Agreement determined by comparing the situation of a candidate species without vs. with the Agreement, including effects on threats, population numbers, or habitat.
For critical habitat designation purposes, means the abiotic and biotic setting that currently or periodically contains the resources and conditions necessary to support one or more life processes of a threatened or endangered species; does not include areas visited by only vagrant individuals.
A species not on the ESA list for which a listing petition has been submitted or is otherwise under consideration.
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology