States Challenge Rollback of Endangered Species Safeguards

Democratic attorneys general from 20 states and Washington, DC, say the government has illegally rolled back landmark protections.

10 Sep 2026

A coalition of attorneys general from the United States has sued the Trump administration over the weakening of protections for endangered species.

The group of 20 Democratic-led states, along with the District of Columbia, filed two lawsuits on Wednesday.

These complaints come less than two months after the Departments of Interior and Commerce announced final rules that could make it easier for companies to develop sensitive lands that serve as habitats for endangered species.

“The Trump administration is attempting to undermine the law, the will of Congress, and the will of the people, who overwhelmingly support protections for endangered species,” Washington state Attorney General Nick Brown said at a news conference.

“Instead of stewardship, this administration’s approach to our land and water is one of exploitation.”

One of the two lawsuits argues that the government has unlawfully narrowed the definition of “harm” within the 1973 Endangered Species Act, a landmark piece of legislation designed to protect animals and plants at risk of extinction.

“Harm”, under the law, has long been interpreted to include threats to the habitats of those species.

However, the states argued that the Trump administration’s new rule represents a “reversal of staggering proportions.”

It would open the door to activities such as mining and oil drilling in sensitive habitats, provided these activities are not “directed immediately and intentionally” at particular animals.

Environmental groups have also filed lawsuits challenging the change.

The second lawsuit challenges two new rules. One eliminates broad protections for newly threatened species unless the US Fish and Wildlife Service creates species-specific regulations.

The second rule requires the government to consider objections from private companies before designating areas as “critical habitats.”

The lawsuit argues that these changes leave endangered species with fewer safeguards than what Congress outlined in the original law.

The 1973 law has been credited with helping restore the populations of animals such as condors, grizzly bears, and humpback whales. It is widely regarded as a keystone achievement of US conservation efforts.

However, the Trump administration has pledged to roll back environmental protections in favor of prioritizing economic growth.

“Drill, baby, drill” was a popular slogan during Trump’s 2024 re-election campaign, as he promised to open protected lands to greater oil exploration and private development.

Critics of the administration’s aggressive deregulation fear that it may trigger irreversible changes, pushing species toward extinction.

“Caring for our wildlife and our environment is part of caring for our future,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement. “Yet President Trump seems to care only for himself and his industry friends.”

However, the Trump administration has argued that environmental protections have gone too far.

It accused Wednesday’s lawsuits of seeking to defend “regulatory overreach” that exceeded what Congress had intended.

“The role of federal agencies is to faithfully implement the Endangered Species Act as written, not to expand its reach through interpretations favored by advocacy organizations,” an Interior Department spokesperson said, according to Reuters.

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