387,000+ Public Comments Submitted in Defense of Endangered Species Act

December 23, 2025 in Endangered Species, Endangered Species Policy

Washington, DC—The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) and 29 other conservation groups facilitated the submission of more than 387,000 public comments to the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service in opposition to sweeping changes to the Endangered Species Act proposed in November by the Trump administration. The ESA is our nation’s most effective tool for saving wildlife facing extinction, and these regulations would make it more difficult to protect threatened and endangered species.

If finalized as proposed, the regulatory changes could introduce biased economic data into the decision-making process involved in listing a species as threatened or endangered. It would also eliminate key protections for threatened species, reduce vital input from federal wildlife agencies, and shrink the amount of protected habitat set aside to support species’ recovery.

“The hundreds of thousands of comments opposing these anti-wildlife regulations demonstrate that the Trump administration’s efforts to undermine the Endangered Species Act are fundamentally out of step with the desires of the American people,” said Susan Millward, executive director and CEO of the Animal Welfare Institute. “Increased threats from development and a changing climate necessitate strong implementation of the ESA—now more than ever. Safeguarding threatened and endangered species and the habitats they rely on is non-negotiable.”