Overview
- The Interior and Commerce Departments finalized the rule on Friday, July 10, 2026, removing habitat destruction from the ESA's regulatory definition of "harm".
- Under the change, actions that modify or degrade habitat will generally not count as unlawful "harm" unless they directly injure or kill listed animals or plants.
- The administration cited the 2024 Supreme Court Loper Bright decision limiting judicial deference to agencies and said the rule will cut permitting and compliance costs for energy, timber, farming and fishing interests.
- Conservation groups warn the change will allow wider habitat damage and several groups have pledged legal challenges, arguing the rule undermines protections that prevent species declines.
- The move caps a decades-long debate over habitat-based enforcement of the ESA, could speed approvals for projects on private and federal lands, and leaves courts as the likely battleground over how far agencies may restrict land use.