On November 19, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced its intention to revise Endangered Species Act policies. The proposed rules, two of which were issued in coordination with the Department of Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service, would revise Biden administration regulations finalized in 2024. The proposed rules revert to the 2019 and 2020 regulatory text governing listing, delisting, and critical habitat determinations. These actions implement Executive Orders 14154, “Unleashing American Energy,” and 14219, “Department of Government Efficiency,” along with (Interior) Secretary’s Order 3418, which directs the “removal of impediments imposed on the development and use of our Nation's abundant energy and natural resources by the Biden administration’s burdensome regulations.”

The bay checkerspot butterfly, listed as an endangered species by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 2022.

Bjorn Erickson/USFWS

One of the proposed rules allows the Services to consider economic, national security, and other relevant impacts when determining whether to exclude areas from critical habitat, potentially impacting energy production and infrastructure, before deciding whether to list a species as endangered.

The services jointly propose to restore the 2019 and 2020 regulatory text governing listing, delisting and critical habitat determinations. The proposed rule 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.

The Fish and Wildlife Service proposes to eliminate the “blanket rule” option and require species-specific 4(d) rules tailored to each threatened species. The agencies believe 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.

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.

The proposed rules were published in the Federal Register on November 19. The public is encouraged to submit comments during the 30-day comment period beginning November 21 at https://www.regulations.gov by searching the following docket numbers:

• FWS–HQ–ES–2025–0039 (Section 4)
• FWS–HQ–ES–2025–0044 (Section 7)
• FWS–HQ–ES–2025–0029 (Section 4(d))
• FWS–HQ–ES–2025–0048 (Section 4(b)(2))

The administration will then write final rules, a process that could take up to two years. Environmental groups are expected to challenge the proposals in court once they are finalized.