Comments Needed: Stop the Trump Administration From Repealing Regulations that Preserve Natural Resources

While everyone was focused on the "Big Beautiful Bill," the Department of Interior (DOI) extended the comment period on regulatory reform. Comments are now due July 21, 2025.

DOI wants feedback on which regulations should be repealed. This request is in direct conflict with DOI’s mission. Their mission is to protect and manage our natural resources.

DOI is now essentially asking oil and logging tycoons which laws get in the way of exploiting the ecosystem. The good news is that this comment period is open to the public.

You can comment in support of the existing regulations. Submit comments to the Federal Register. 

If you don’t know what to include in your comment, you can find some some talking points below. These talking points came from a letter submitted by The Wildlife Society Western Section.

Talking Points For Public Comments:

"The Department of Interior's mission statement establishes clear directives to protect, provide, and honor through the following mandate:

The U.S. Department of the Interior protects and manages the Nation’s natural resources and cultural heritage; provides scientific and other information about those resources; and honors its trust responsibilities or special commitments to American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and affiliated Island Communities.

Existing regulations that support mission fulfillment should undergo modification only to strengthen their effectiveness. Regulatory repeal should occur exclusively when regulations conflict with the Department's mission or compromise public welfare. Science-based regulations serve as essential mechanisms for advancing DOI's mission while protecting American interests and national natural resources.

Environmental regulations provide the legal framework for evidence-based wildlife conservation. They:

• Establish standardized, science-based approaches to wildlife management across jurisdictions;
• Create accountability mechanisms that ensure management decisions are based on best available knowledge;
• Provide consistent baselines for monitoring wildlife populations and habitat health over time; and
• Enable coordinated responses to emerging threats based on scientific consensus rather than political expediency.

Environmental regulations support landscape-level conservation planning. They:

• Enable coordinated management across federal, state, tribal, and private lands for comprehensive conservation;
• Provide mechanisms for addressing landscape-level impacts that affect multiple species and habitats;
• Support ecosystem-based management approaches that maintain ecological function and resilience; and
• Create frameworks for addressing cumulative impacts that would be missed by site-specific assessments alone.

Environmental regulations ensure equitable public input in wildlife management decisions. They:

• Create transparent processes for stakeholder participation in decision-making; 
• Ensure historically marginalized communities have a voice in decisions affecting wildlife resources;
• Balance diverse interests (conservation, recreation, tribal rights, economic) through structured input processes; and
• Provide consistent mechanisms for incorporating traditional ecological knowledge alongside Western science.

Environmental regulations protect ecosystem services that benefit human communities. They:

• Safeguard water quality and quantity through watershed protection requirements;
• Maintain flood mitigation services provided by wetlands and natural floodplains;
• Preserve pollinator habitat essential for agricultural productivity; and
• Protect recreational opportunities that support local economies and public health.

Environmental regulations create regulatory certainty that benefits conservation planning. They:

• Provide consistent expectations for all stakeholders involved in land and wildlife management;
• Enable long-term conservation commitments through stable regulatory frameworks;
• Support proactive conservation approaches rather than reactive crisis management; and
• Create predictable processes that improve the efficiency of conservation efforts."