H.R. 1897
ESA Amendments Act of 2025
Sponsor: Bruce Westerman
26 cosponsors
- Michael A. Rulli
- Andy Biggs
- Celeste Maloy
- Cliff Bentz
- Dan Newhouse
- Doug LaMalfa
- Harriet M. Hageman
- Jeff Hurd
- Mark E. Amodei
- Mike Ezell
- Nicholas J. Begich III
- Paul A. Gosar
- Pete Stauber
- Russ Fulcher
- Thomas P. Tiffany
- Wesley Hunt
- Troy Downing
- Addison P. McDowell
- Lauren Boebert
- Glenn Thompson
- Ken Calvert
- Mike Collins
- Clay Higgins
- Tim Walberg
- Glenn Grothman
- Robert E. Latta
Official summary
Written by the Congressional Research Service.
ESA Amendments Act of 2025
This bill reauthorizes through FY2031 the Endangered Species Act and generally narrows protections provided under the act.
The bill directs the Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service to submit a National Listing Work Plan that establishes a five-year schedule and plan for addressing listing of endangered or threatened species and designation of critical habitats for such species. Under the plan, the bill gives the Services flexibility on the timing of acting on listing petitions and eliminates the requirement for the Services to act within 12 months on listing petitions.
The bill limits what land may be designated as critical habitat for an endangered or threatened species.
It also limits protections provided to threatened species and allows a state to regulate the recovery of such species if the Services determine the state's proposed recovery strategy would conserve the species.
The bill provides statutory authority for Conservation Benefit Agreements, which allow private landowners to voluntarily enter agreements to reduce threats to candidate species in exchange for being allowed to continue their operations if the species is later listed.
The bill also modifies the permitting process for certain other voluntary conservation agreements, including by exempting incidental take permits (e.g., permits to harm or kill a species) from environmental review requirements.
The bill also makes a variety of other changes to the act, including limiting consultation requirements, judicial review, and awards for attorneys’ fees in certain cases.
Text of the bill
I Optimizing conservation through resource prioritization
II Incentivizing wildlife conservation on private lands
III Providing for greater incentives to recover listed species
Where this section came from
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Mar 6, 2025 · Introduced in House Referred to House Committee on Natural Resources, Mar 6, 2025
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Mar 24, 2026 · Reported in House Marked up by House Committee on Natural Resources, Dec 17, 2025 Reported by House Committee on Natural Resources, Mar 24 Committee members' individual votes aren't in our records.
… 4 unchanged passages …
(1) Issuance. (A) In general. Whenever any species is listed as a threatened species pursuant to subsection (c), the Secretary shall issue such regulations as are necessary and advisable to provide for the conservation of that species. (B) Requirement. In issuing a regulation under subparagraph (A), the Secretary, consistent with the findings, purposes, and policy described in section 2 and based on the best scientific and commercial data available, shall consider the conservation and economic effects of such regulation.
… 12 unchanged passages …
(C) Publication. Not later than
30
60
days after the date on which the Secretary approves or denies a petition under subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall publish such approval or denial
in
on
the
Federal
website
Register
of the applicable department
.
… 16 unchanged passages …
What is a markup?
A markup is a committee meeting where members go through a bill and vote on changes before sending it to the full chamber.
Section 4 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533) is amended—
(1) in subsection (d), to read as follows:
(d) Protective regulations
(1) Issuance
(A) In general. Whenever any species is listed as a threatened species pursuant to subsection (c), the Secretary shall issue such regulations as are necessary and advisable to provide for the conservation of that species.
(B) Requirement. In issuing a regulation under subparagraph (A), the Secretary, consistent with the findings, purposes, and policy described in section 2 and based on the best scientific and commercial data available, shall consider the conservation and economic effects of such regulation.
(2) Recovery goals
(A) In general. If the Secretary issues a regulation under paragraph (1) that prohibits an act described in section 9(a), the Secretary shall, with respect to the species that is the subject of such regulation—
(i) establish objective, incremental recovery goals;
(ii) provide for the stringency of such regulation to decrease as such recovery goals are met; and
(iii) provide for State management within such State, if such State is willing to take on such management, beginning on the date on which the Secretary determines that each such recovery goal is met and, if each such recovery goal remains met, continuing until such species is removed from the list of threatened species published pursuant to subsection (c).
(B) Status review. On the date on which the Secretary determines that each recovery goal established under subparagraph (A)(i) for a species is met, the Secretary shall begin a review of the species and subsequently determine, on the basis of such review, whether the species should be removed from the lists published pursuant to subsection (c)(1).
(3) Cooperative agreement. A regulation issued under paragraph (1) that prohibits an act described in section 9(a) with respect to a resident species shall apply with respect to a State that has entered into a cooperative agreement with the Secretary pursuant to section 6(c) only to the extent that such regulation is adopted by such State.
(4) State recovery strategy
(A) In general. A State may develop a recovery strategy for a threatened species or a candidate species and submit to the Secretary a petition for the Secretary to use such recovery strategy as the basis for any regulation issued under paragraph (1) with respect to such species within such State.
(B) Approval or denial of petition. Not later than 120 days after the date on which the Secretary receives a petition submitted under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall—
(i) approve such petition if the Secretary determines the recovery strategy is reasonably certain to be implemented by the petitioning State and to be effective in conserving the species that is the subject of such recovery strategy; or
(ii) deny such petition if the requirements described in clause (i) are not met.
(C) Publication. Not later than 60 days after the date on which the Secretary approves or denies a petition under subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall publish such approval or denial on the website of the applicable department.
(D) Denial of petition
(i) Written explanation. If the Secretary denies a petition under subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall include in such denial a written explanation for such denial, including a description of the changes to such petition that are necessary for the Secretary to approve such petition.
(ii) Resubmission of denied petition. A State may resubmit a petition that is denied under subparagraph (B).
(E) Use in protective regulations. If the Secretary approves a petition under subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall—
(i) issue a regulation under paragraph (1) that adopts the recovery strategy as such regulation with respect to the species that is the subject of such recovery strategy within the petitioning State; and
(ii) establish objective criteria to evaluate the effectiveness of such recovery strategy in conserving such species within such State.
(F) Revision. If a recovery strategy that is adopted as a regulation issued under paragraph (1) is determined by the Secretary to be ineffective in conserving the species that is the subject of such recovery strategy in accordance with the objective criteria established under subparagraph (E)(ii) for such recovery strategy, the Secretary shall revise such regulation and reissue such regulation in accordance with paragraph (1).
; and
(2) in subsection (f)(1)(B)—
(A) in clause (ii), by striking and at the end;
(B) in clause (iii), by striking the period at the end and inserting ; and; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
(iv) with respect to an endangered species, objective, incremental recovery goals in accordance with subsection (d)(2)(A) for use under that subsection if such endangered species is changed in status from an endangered species to a threatened species under subsection (c)(2)(B)(ii).
IV Creating greater transparency and accountability in recovering listed species
V Streamlining permitting process
VI Eliminating barriers to conservation
VII Restoring congressional intent