US states sue Trump administration for weakening endangered species protections
XLE•Legal backdrop for the lawsuits
The changes follow the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in 2024 to overrule a 40-year-old precedent that required courts to defer to federal agencies' reasonable interpretations of laws they administer.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York)
Lawmakers and advocates debate the scope of the changes
Enacted by Congress in 1973, the Endangered Species Act has been credited with saving a variety of animals including the California condor, grizzly bear and humpback whale from possible extinction.
Weakening the law aligns with Trump's goal to reduce regulations that he says constrain American businesses.
These include the scaling back of a variety of environmental initiatives and standards, including by reducing government support for clean energy and repealing an Obama administration-era scientific finding that climate change threatens public health.
