Contact: Lexi Hamel
(208) 488-2115
[email protected]
WASHINGTON—Today, Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson – Chairman of the House Interior and Environment Appropriations Subcommittee – released the following statement in response to the Department of the Interior’s U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s four proposed rules to restore Endangered Species Act regulations to their proven 2019 and 2020 framework.
“I applaud Secretary Burgum and the Trump Administration for taking necessary action to restore the Endangered Species Act to its original intent. I’ve fought long and hard against ESA overreach and abuse, and these newly proposed rules are a critical step forward. They will bring much-needed clarity, rein in federal overreach, and provide certainty to states, landowners, and tribal communities while empowering state and local wildlife managers to continue protecting truly endangered species and habitat,” said Rep. Simpson.
The four proposed rules are:
- Listing and critical habitat (50 CFR part 424):
- The services jointly propose to restore the 2019 regulatory text governing listing, delisting and critical habitat determinations. The proposal ensures decisions are based on the best scientific and commercial data available while allowing transparent consideration of economic impacts. It reestablishes the longstanding two-step process for designating unoccupied habitat, restores clarity to the definition of “foreseeable future” and reinstates flexibility to determine when designating critical habitat is not prudent.
- Interagency cooperation (50 CFR part 402):
- The services jointly propose to return to the 2019 consultation framework by reinstating definitions of “effects of the action” and “environmental baseline,” removing the 2024 “offset” provisions and restoring section 7 procedures consistent with the statutory text. These changes respond directly to the Supreme Court’s decision in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, which overturned the Chevron deference standard and reaffirmed that agencies must adhere strictly to the law as written.
- Threatened species protections (50 CFR part 17; section 4(d)):
- The Fish and Wildlife Service proposes to eliminate the “blanket rule” option and require species-specific 4(d) rules tailored to each threatened species. This approach reflects the single best reading of the statute under Loper Bright and ensures that protections are necessary and advisable to conserve each species without imposing unnecessary restrictions on others. It also aligns service policy with the National Marine Fisheries Service’s longstanding species-specific approach.
- Critical habitat exclusions (50 CFR part 17; section 4(b)(2)):
- The Fish and Wildlife Service proposes to reinstate its 2020 rule clarifying how economic, national security and other relevant impacts are weighed when determining whether to exclude areas from critical habitat. The revised framework provides transparency and predictability for landowners and project proponents while maintaining the service’s authority to ensure that exclusions will not result in species extinction.
Rep. Simpson has long championed the effort that prohibits funds from being used to enact federal listing of the greater sage-grouse, thereby empowering state and local species managers to continue protecting sage-grouse populations in communities across the
West.
About Mike Simpson
An Idaho native, Mike Simpson was born in Burley and raised in Blackfoot. His political career began in 1980, when he was elected to the Blackfoot City Council. In 1984, he was elected to the Idaho Legislature where he served until 1998, the last six years serving as Speaker. Mike is currently serving his fourteenth term in the House of Representatives for Idaho’s second congressional district. Visit https://simpson.house.gov/ to learn more or find contact info.
