# US ESA rollbacks spark bipartisan legislative response > Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/us-endangered-species-act-rule-changes-under-trump > Updated: 2026-07-30T15:41:01.000Z. Sources: 66. Developments: 10. In March 2026 a Northern California district court vacated three 2019 Endangered Species Act (ESA) consultation regulations and a 2024 provision, temporarily restoring pre‑2019 rules. The same month the ESA “God Squad” convened for the first time in 30 years to consider an exemption for Gulf‑of‑Mexico oil‑and‑gas projects. In July 2026 the Interior and Commerce Departments finalized a rule narrowing the ESA definition of “harm,” removing habitat‑degradation language and allowing logging, mining and drilling to proceed without ESA protection. Published in the Federal Register on 14 July, the rule is slated to take effect on 14 September. Conservation groups, including the Center for Biological Diversity and Earthjustice, filed an emergency lawsuit seeking to block the change. The Fish and Wildlife Service issued final revisions on 17 July 2026 that eliminate the agency’s blanket Section 4(d) rule for newly listed or re‑classified threatened species, requiring species‑specific protections deemed “necessary and advisable.” A second rule revises the process for excluding areas from critical‑habitat designations, adding an economic analysis and benefit‑balancing requirement. Both rules take effect on 20 August 2026, restoring provisions first adopted during the Trump administration that had been rescinded by the Biden administration. Secretary Doug Burgum cancelled the ESA “blanket 4(d)” rule, moving to case‑by‑case plans, and the FWS rescinded both the narrowed “harm” definition and the blanket rule pending OIRA review after the Supreme Court’s Loper Bright decision. On 23 July 2026, Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick (R‑PA) and Mike Quigley (D‑IL) introduced the bipartisan Safeguarding Endangered Species Act bill, aiming to overturn the “harm” rule and preserve federal habitat protections. Environmental groups, tribal nations and experts continue to litigate and warn that the combined rollbacks could jeopardize wildlife, water quality and climate‑mitigation benefits of protected lands. ## Timeline ### 2026-07-30: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Revises Endangered Species Act Rules for Threatened Species The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on July 17, 2026 issued final ESA rules ending the blanket Section 4(d) protection for threatened species and revising critical‑habitat exclusion procedures, effective Aug 20, 2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/us-fish-and-wildlife-service-revises-endangered-species-act-rules-for-threatened-species ### 2026-07-23: Endangered Species Act Habitat Protections Rollback Prompts Bipartisan Congressional Action A bipartisan bill seeks to overturn a Trump-era rule that narrows “harm” definitions under the Endangered Species Act, removing federal habitat protections and shifting responsibility to under‑resourced state… 2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/endangered-species-act-habitat-protections-rollback-prompts-bipartisan-congressional-action ### 2026-07-23: U.S. Interior Department revises ESA ‘harm’ definition The U.S. Interior and Commerce departments finalized a July 2026 rule redefining “harm” in the Endangered Species Act, stripping habitat protection and prompting immediate lawsuits from environmental groups. 4 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/us-interior-department-revises-esa-harm-definition ### 2026-07-20: Trump administration moves to roll back major forest and species protections The Trump administration plans to repeal the Roadless Rule protecting 45 million forest acres and roll back ESA protections for threatened species, prompting lawsuits from environmental groups. 3 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/trump-administration-moves-to-roll-back-major-forest-and-species-protections ### 2026-07-20: U.S. Endangered Species Act faces major regulatory changes U.S. courts nullify key ESA consultation rules, the “God Squad” reviews a Gulf oil‑gas exemption, and the Interior proposes dropping the “harm” definition, threatening habitat protections. 2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/us-endangered-species-act-faces-major-regulatory-changes ### 2026-07-19: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Rolls Back Endangered Species Protections The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is removing the blanket rule that automatically protects newly listed threatened species and rescinding its definition of “harm” under the Endangered Species Act, actions that 2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/us-fish-and-wildlife-service-rolls-back-endangered-species-protections ### 2026-07-17: US Interior Department rolls back Endangered Species Act protections The US Interior Department ended automatic ESA protections for threatened species and added an economic‑impact test for critical habitats, prompting wildlife groups to warn of accelerated extinctions. 23 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/us-interior-department-ends-automatic-protection-rule-for-threatened-species ### 2026-07-17: US Fish and Wildlife Service rescinds ESA habitat‑protection rule The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service rescinded the ESA’s “harm” definition on July 14 2026, ending habitat‑modification protections; the rule faces lawsuits and criticism for 2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/us-fish-and-wildlife-service-rescinds-esa-habitatprotection-rule ### 2026-07-14: US Conservation Groups Sue Over Trump Endangered Species Act Rule Change Conservation groups sued the Trump administration’s rule that narrowed the Endangered Species Act’s “harm” definition, arguing it removes habitat protections and violates legal precedent. 2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/us-conservation-groups-sue-over-trump-endangered-species-act-rule-change ### 2026-07-10: Trump administration narrows ESA 'harm' definition, weakening protections The Trump administration rescinded habitat‑destruction from the ESA’s “harm” definition, allowing developers to degrade wildlife habitats without violation, sparking backlash from conservation groups and legal‑ 31 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/trump-administration-rolls-back-endangered-species-act-protections --- Cite as: US ESA rollbacks spark bipartisan legislative response. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/us-endangered-species-act-rule-changes-under-trump