H.R. 1897

ESA Amendments Act of 2025

Sponsor: Bruce Westerman

26 cosponsors
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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

Expand all

I Optimizing conservation through resource prioritization

II Incentivizing wildlife conservation on private lands

III Providing for greater incentives to recover listed species

IV Creating greater transparency and accountability in recovering listed species

V Streamlining permitting process

Sec. 506. Expansion of exemption process and eligibility under section 7 of Endangered Species Act of 1973 Added Mar 24

Where this section came from

Not in the first version (Introduced in House, Mar 6).

  1. Mar 24, 2026 · Reported in House Marked up by House Committee on Natural Resources, Dec 17 Reported by House Committee on Natural Resources, Mar 24 Committee members' individual votes aren't in our records.
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 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1536) is amended—

(1) in subsection (g)—

(A) in paragraph (1), to read as follows:

Text this section adds to the law

(1)

(A) A Federal agency, the Governor of the State in which an agency action will occur, if any, or a permit or license applicant may apply to the Secretary for an exemption for an agency action of such agency if, after consultation under subsection (a)(2), the Secretary’s opinion under subsection (b) indicates that—

(i) the agency action would violate subsection (a)(2); or

(ii) a reasonable and prudent alternative necessary for the agency action to comply with subsection (a)(2) may—

(I) impair national security; or

(II) result in significant adverse national or regional economic impacts.

(B) An application for an exemption shall be considered initially by the Secretary in the manner provided for in this subsection, and shall be considered by the Committee for a final determination under subsection (h) after a report is made pursuant to paragraph (5).

(C) The applicant for an exemption shall be referred to as the exemption applicant in this section.

(B) in paragraph (3)—

(i) in subparagraph (A), to read as follows:

Text this section adds to the law

(A) determine—

(i) that the Federal agency concerned and the exemption applicant have—

(I) carried out the consultation responsibilities described in subsection (a) in good faith and made a reasonable and responsible effort to develop and fairly consider reasonable and prudent alternatives to the proposed agency action which would not violate subsection (a)(2);

(II) conducted any biological assessment required by subsection (c); and

(III) to the extent determinable within the time provided herein, refrained from making any irreversible or irretrievable commitment of resources prohibited by subsection (d); and

(ii) if the exemption applicant submitted to the Secretary the application for exemption pursuant to paragraph (1)(A)(ii), whether a reasonable and prudent alternative necessary for the proposed agency action to comply with subsection (a)(2) may—

(I) impair national security; or

(II) result in significant adverse national or regional economic impacts; or

; and

(ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking (i), (ii), and (iii);

(C) in paragraph (4), by striking (i), (ii) and (iii); and

(D) in paragraph (5)—

(i) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) through (D) as subparagraphs (C) through (E), respectively; and

(ii) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following:

Text this section adds to the law

(B) if the exemption applicant submitted to the Secretary the application for exemption pursuant to paragraph (1)(A)(ii), after consultation with the National Security Council regarding potential impacts to national security and the Director of the National Economic Council regarding potential significant adverse national and regional economic impacts, any impairment to national security or significant adverse national or regional economic impacts that would result from a reasonable and prudent alternative necessary for the agency action to comply with subsection (a)(2), including a description of the analysis and conclusions produced by the National Security Council and the Director of the National Economic Council as a result of each such consultation;

; and

(2) in subsection (h)(1)(A)(i), to read as follows:

Text this section adds to the law

(i)

(I) there are no reasonable and prudent alternatives to the agency action; or

(II) with respect to an agency action the application for exemption of which was submitted to the Secretary pursuant to subsection (g)(1)(A)(ii), a reasonable and prudent alternative necessary for the agency action to comply with subsection (a)(2) may—

(aa) impair national security; or

(bb) result in significant adverse national or regional economic impacts;

VI Eliminating barriers to conservation

VII Restoring congressional intent