Conservation Code Red: Reviewing the Must-Win Battles in the 2026 Funding Bills

Rob Goldstein

Jul 11th, 2025

As we move through July, the field of nature conservation faces its most critical moment so far of the 2nd Trump presidency.

Congress has been drafting the fiscal year spending bills for 2026. The House and Senate committees are releasing their draft appropriations bills as I type this.

In normal years, this would be a very important moment. These bills set the annual spending and staffing for our nation's conservation agencies and programs.

But this summer, the stakes are higher than Denali. Several critical programs in nature conservation face a battle for survival. Other programs are staring down steep cuts.

Trump wants to use the budget to officially eliminate many conservation programs.

Congress holds the power of the purse—it decides what goes in the spending bills. But the president always releases a budget request that sets the administration's priorities.

In Trump's budget request, he proposes either outright elimination or insanely, steep cuts to many agency programs. On the chopping block—AmeriCorps, NOAA research programs, USGS research programs, USFWS grant programs, and more.

This makes the upcoming legislation a high-stakes moment. If Congress adopts Trump's proposal for steep cuts, it will codify what DOGE has been trying to do illegally—dismantle conservation agencies and programs. Conversely, if Congress rejects these cuts and maintains funding at 2025 levels, it makes the administration's destructive efforts much harder.

The good news is we can stop this.

These spending bills will require 60 votes for passage in the Senate. That means Republicans need to negotiate with Democrats to the pass the bills.

But a couple of big questions await. First, will Republican leadership in the Senate and the House carry the president's water and push for steep cuts? Or will they follow their conscience and the interests of their constituents? Second, will Democrats use their leverage to get the best spending deal possible for conservation. Or will they fold?

Conservation supporters can still play a role in the outcome. Now is the time to speak LOUD AND CLEAR that we will not accept any signficant cuts to conservation agencies or programs.

VICTORY = NO FUNDING CUTS TO CONSERVATION.

So what are the funding battles we need to win?

Below I outline key funding areas in conservation that are facing either steep cuts or outright elimination.

I include: A) the approved funding levels from FY25, and B) Trump's proposed funding for FY26.

I also will include: C) the House and D) the Senate FY26 Spending Bills—as their latest versions are released.

As the process rolls along, I will continue to post updates with new numbers from the House, Senate, and—ultimately—the final bills.

1) AmeriCorps

FY25 Funding Amount: $1.262 billion
FY26 Trump Proposal: $107 million ($1,155 billion cut), -91%
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: AmeriCorps plays a major role in conservation work and early career professional development. Learn more about Trump's dismantling of AmeriCorps. Trump's budget request eliminates AmeriCorps entirely. The FY26 funding would be used for the administrative costs of winding down operations. Essentially this would help codify the elimination of AmeriCorps.

2) USGS - Ecosystem Mission Area

FY25 Funding Amount: $292 million
FY26 Trump Proposal: $0.00 ($292 million cut), 100% decrease.
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: USGS Ecosystem Mission Area is the backbone of our nation's ecological research. Read more here. Trump is proposing elimination of this critically important agency division.

3) National Park Service

FY25 Funding Amount: $3.337 billion
FY26 Trump Proposal: $2.116 billion ($1,220 billion cut), 37% decrease.
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: These are steep cuts for an already underfunded agency. It would likely result in the closure or reduced visiting hours of many sites.

4) Bureau of Land Management - Conservation Funding

FY25 Funding Amount: $758 million
FY26 Trump Proposal: $395 million ($362 million cut), 48% decrease.
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: For this funding area, I'm combining the divisions within the BLM responsible for land management and conservation: a) Land Resources, b) Wildlife Habitat Management & Aquatic Resources, c) Recreation Management, d) Resource Protection & Maintenance, and e) National Conservation Lands.

The BLM manages 245 million acres land. Trump's funding proposal would fund those efforts for the entire year at less than $2 per acre.

5) US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) - Total Agency

FY25 Funding Amount: $1.677 billion
FY26 Trump Proposal: $1.139 billion ($538 million cut), 32% decrease.
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: This is the funding level for the entire agency which includes enforcing federal laws like the Endangered Species Act and managing our National Wildlife Refuge system (which is larger than our National Parks).

6) USFWS - Wildlife Conservation Grants

FY25 Funding Amount: $169 million
FY26 Trump Proposal: $0.00 ($169 million cut). 100% decrease.
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: This also falls within (5) Total Agency, but I'm breaking it out separately due to the urgency.

In this funding area, I'm combing 5 conservation grant programs that Trump wants to end: Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund, North American Wetlands Conservation Fund, Multinational Species Conservation Fund, Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Fund, State and Tribal Wildlife Grants.

7) US Forest Service - Forest and Rangeland Research

FY25 Funding Amount: $300 million
FY26 Trump Proposal: $0.00 ($300 million cut), 100% decrease.
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: Trump is proposing eliminating the US Forest Service's Experimental Forests and Ranges.

8) US Forest Service - State, Private, and Tribal Forestry

FY25 Funding Amount: $283 million
FY26 Trump Proposal: $0.00 ($283 million cut), 100% decrease.
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: Trump wants to completely eliminate US Forest Service's State, Private, Tribal Forestry.

9) US Forest Service - National Forest System

FY25 Funding Amount: $1.863 billion
FY26 Trump Proposal: $1.296 billion ($567 million cut), 30% decrease.
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: Once again, this is an already underfunded agency tasked with managing a large area of land (193 million acres, more than 2 x the size of our National Parks).

10) Natural Resource Conservation Service

FY25 Funding Amount: $896 million
FY26 Trump Proposal: $112 million ($784 million cut), 87% decrease.
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: Trump is proposing massive cuts here to NRCS - an agency that provides important conservation services to rural landowners across the US.

11) NOAA - Oceanic And Atmospheric Research (OAR)

* I can't find FY2025 funding data for NOAA. I will update when I find it.

FY24 Funding Amount: $738 million*
FY26 Trump Proposal: $0.00 ($738 million cut), 100% decrease.
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: Trump is proposing to completely eliminate a massive, wide ranging research wing of our government. NOAA Research and its 880 employers (as of 2024) make up our nation's leading research centers on climate, weather, oceans, and lakes.

12) NOAA - National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)

FY24 Funding Amount: $1.219 billion
FY26 Trump Proposal: $789 million ($429 million cut), 35% decrease.
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: NMFS (NOAA Fisheries) is another division of NOAA facing major cuts. Several offices get hit particularly hard. I feature two below.

13) NOAA - Protected Resources Science and Management

FY24 Funding Amount: $264 million
FY26 Trump Proposal: $115 million ($149 million cut), 56% decrease.
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: This falls under (12) NMFS. The Office of Protected Resources is responsible for the protection and recovery of more than 150 endangered and threatened marine species under the Endangered Species Act.

14) NOAA - Habitat Conservation and Restoration

FY24 Funding Amount: $56 million
FY26 Trump Proposal: $0.00 ($56 million cut), 100% decrease.
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: This falls under (12) NMFS. I've broken it out because the Office of Habitat Conservation and its 192 employees (as of 2024) face elimination unless Congress rejects Trump's cuts.

15) NOAA - Ocean and Coastal Management and Services

FY24 Funding Amount: $296 million
FY26 Trump Proposal: $112 million ($184 million cut), 62% decrease.
FY26 House Draft Bill:
FY26 Senate Draft Bill:
FY26 Final Spending Bill:

Discussion: This section of the NOAA budget includes multiple divisions facing steep cuts: a) National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERR); b) Sanctuaries and Marine Protected Areas; c) Coral Reef Conservation, and others. Of particular note, NERR is facing elimination unless Congress rejects Trump's cuts.