The Public Trust - Public Lands, Hunting, Fishing, Outdoor Recreation & Government Policy News

Senator Seeks to Transfer 140,000 Acres of Louisiana's Only National Forest. Residents Are Furious

National Forest Transfer Outdoor Life Natalie Krebs LA

Public Comment Opportunities

National Wildlife Refuge System: 2026–2027 Station-Specific Hunting and Sport Fishing Regulations

Hunting / Fishing U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Comment By: Jun 26, 2026

Congressional Public Lands Score

Public Lands Scorecard More Than Just Parks

Proposed Fish and Wildlife Regulatory Revisions (deer, crossbow, coolwater sportfish, trapping, and more)

NY State Rulemaking NYSDEC Comment By: See notice

New Mexico: 2026 Biennial Review — State Threatened & Endangered Wildlife Species

NM Species Listing Review New Mexico Department of Wildlife Comment By: Jul 6, 2026

National Issues

Trump Admin Targets Five of Oregon's Seven Wonders for Destruction

May 28 Public Lands / Federal Policy More Than Just Parks Will Pattiz OR

Stevan Pearce Confirmed as BLM Director, Despite His Position on Public Land Sales

May 18 BLM / Public Lands Outdoor Life Andrew McKean

The Next Dust Bowl Is (Probably) Coming. Here's What to Know

Apr 28 Drought / Climate Outdoor Life Andrew McKean

‘It’s incredibly bad’: No end in sight to Colorado River water crisis

Apr 10 Water / Colorado River WyoFile Dustin Bleizeffer WY

Department of the Interior Opens 2.1 Million Acres in Alaska's Dalton Corridor

Feb 20 Major Policy Change U.S. Department of the Interior AK

Utah Delegation Uses Unprecedented Tactic to Go After National Monument Plan

Apr 6 CRA / Public Lands Planning MeatEater Sage Marshall UT

Endangered Species Act “God Squad” Exempts Offshore Oil and Gas Operations from ESA Consultation

Apr 3 ESA / Offshore Oil & Gas National Law Review Beveridge & Diamond (Client Alert)

Lawsuit Targets Action Opening 2.1 Million Acres in Alaska to Development

Mar 10 Litigation Alaska Beacon AK

Alaska State Public Notice (ID 223132)

Mar 2026 Public Notice State of Alaska AK

Utah Lawmakers Move to Throw Out Management Plan for Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument

Mar 4 Major Policy Change NPCA UT

Heinrich Highlights Legislation to Protect Public Land Access in Placitas and Río Grande del Norte

Feb 20 Proposed Legislation Senate Energy Committee NM

BLM Seeks Input, Nominations for Oil and Gas Lease Sale in Arctic Refuge Coastal Plain

Feb 2 Oil & Gas Leasing Bureau of Land Management AK

'Downright foolish': Trump Administration to Build Highway Through Utah Conservation Area

Jan 26 Public Lands SF Gate UT

Trump Admin "Deliberately" Tanking Morale to Get Parks Staff to Quit, Official Says in Leaked Tape

Jan 21 Major Policy Change The Intercept Matt Sledge

Colorado Parks and Wildlife Provides Updates on Wolves

Jan 21 Wildlife Management Pagosa Sun CO

Congress Releases Conferenced FY2026 Interior Spending Bill

Jan 14 Major Policy Change The Wildlife Society

State Issues

Mass. Recreational Fishing Group Slams License Fund Shift

Apr 29 License Revenue / State Budget National Fisherman MA

Wildlife Commission Announces 2026–2027 CWD Surveillance Areas

May 1 Wildlife Disease (CWD) NC Wildlife Resources Commission NC

MeatEater Land Access Initiative 2026: Help Save Tuckertown Gamelands

Apr 14 Public Access / Fundraising MeatEater Mark Kenyon NC

Avian Bird Flu Surges in New York Urban Wildlife, Increasing Disease Concerns

Apr 7 Wildlife Disease (H5N1) Mongabay Cate Twining-Ward NY

Wildlife Agency Asks for $450,000 to Bring More Wolves to Colorado

Mar 24 Wildlife / State Budget Colorado Politics CO

Michigan DNR Reports Another County Where Chronic Wasting Disease Was Discovered in Wild Deer

Feb 12 Wildlife Disease (CWD) WZZM 13 Kayla Crandall MI

DEQ Taking Public Comment on Blackfoot Gold Mine Exploration Proposal

Mar 24 Mining / Public Comment KPAX MT Comment By: Apr 13, 2026

Albany Bill Would Open Ulster County Forests to Solar Developers Without Local Approval

Feb 26 Energy / Public Lands New York Energy Alliance NY

Fast-Tracked Solar Drilling Punctures Groundwater at Horseshoe Project Along Genesee River

Feb 23 Energy / Water RochesterFirst NY

DOI Opens 2.1 Million Acres in Alaska's Dalton Corridor

Feb 20 Major Policy Change Alaska Wilderness League AK

BLM Proposes Quadrupling Logging on Millions of Acres in Western Oregon O&C Lands

Feb 20 Forest Management OPB OR

2026 Outside Antelope HMA Emergency Wild Horse Gather

Feb 22 Wildlife Management Bureau of Land Management NV

Granite Staters' Once-in-a-Generation Opportunity: Get Right to Hunt and Fish to the Ballot

Jan 26 Right to Hunt & Fish Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation NH

Bipartisan Bill Seeks to Enshrine Hunters' Rights in State Constitution

Jan 22 Right to Hunt & Fish Spotlight Delaware DE

Sportsmen's Rights at Risk: Virginia Senate Committee to Hear Permit-to-Purchase and Semi-Auto Ban

Jan 25 Firearms Legislation Sportsmen's Alliance VA

Colorado Parks and Wildlife Approves Dual Classification for Bison, Adds New Protections

Nov 13 Wildlife Management KOAA CO

Conservation News & Field Reports

Decisionmakers, Agencies, and Groups Celebrate Increased Public Land Access Through MAPLand Act Milestone

May 20 Public Lands / Access Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership

The billionaires' club at the center of America's public lands fight

May 13 Public Lands / Access High Country News Evan Simon & Ames Alexander MT

DWR Walk-in Access Program Provided Public Access to 49,597 Acres of Private Land for Hunting and Fishing in 2025

May 13 Public Access / VPA-HIP Utah Division of Wildlife Resources UT

Congress is Cutting Conservation Funding to Pay for WHAT?! | Fresh Tracks Weekly Ep. 126

May 12 Federal Budget / Conservation Funding Fresh Tracks Randy Newberg & Marcus Hockett

The President's Budget Proposal Slashes BLM Staff, Refuge and Migratory Bird Funding, and Much More

Apr 22 Federal Budget / Public Lands Outdoor Life Christine Peterson

USDA Announces $52 Million to Boost Public Access to Private Lands for Hunting and Fishing

Apr 24 VPA-HIP / Public Access USDA NRCS

Senate Votes 50 to 49 to Strip Boundary Waters Protections in Defiance of Public Opinion, Science

Apr 16 Boundary Waters / Mining Outdoor Life Natalie Krebs MN

Longer Turkey Seasons in 2026 Signal Population Rebound

Apr 3 Wildlife Management / Turkey OutdoorHub Keith Lusher

Trump Officials Issue Gulf Oil and Gas Drilling Exemption from Endangered Species Act

Apr 1 Endangered Species / Energy AP News

Forest Service overhaul sows confusion, concern

Mar 31 Agency Reorganization High Country News Christine Peterson

Forest Service to Move HQ Out of DC, Shutter Regional Offices in Sweeping Overhaul

Apr 1 Government Reorganization Government Executive Eric Katz

Endangered Species Act: Threats to Watch in 2026

Feb 2 ESA / Legislation WildEarth Guardians

BLM Opens Formal Protest Window Before Utah Oil and Gas Lease Auction (March 31, 2026)

Mar 23 BLM Leasing / Public Comment Energies Media UT

Bipartisan Senate Bill Would Renew Federal Lands Access Program (FLAP) for Roads to Hunting and Camping Lands

Mar 24 Proposed Legislation OutdoorHub

Lawsuit Filed Over Trump Administration Rollback of Greater Sage-Grouse Protections on BLM Lands

Mar 26 Litigation / Sage-Grouse Earthjustice MT

Striped Bass Management: Status Quo for 2026 as a Recruitment Crisis Looms

Feb 12 Fishery Management / Atlantic Coast MidCurrent

Sage Grouse Lawsuits Stack Up — What Montana Upland Hunters Need to Know

Mar 28 Sage-Grouse / Public Lands Montana Outdoor MT

House Passes Bill Protecting Hunters and Anglers from Federal Lead Ammo Bans

Mar 23 Federal Legislation OutdoorHub

The Colorado Wolf Reintroduction Might End the Same Way it Started — with a Ballot Initiative

Feb 26 Wildlife Management / Ballot Initiative MeatEater CO

GOP Lawmakers Want to Allow Sale of Public Lands Near Egg Farm Amid Bird Flu Outbreaks

Mar 12 State Public Lands Policy Wisconsin Public Radio WI

Lummis Introduces Bill Requiring State Wildlife Data in ESA Listing Decisions

Mar 19 Proposed Legislation Sen. Cynthia Lummis WY

Fedorchak Votes to Protect Hunting and Fishing Access for Sportsmen

Mar 2026 Federal Issues Rep. Julie Fedorchak ND

Sharpshooters Will Eradicate Deer on Catalina Island Under New Plan

Feb 9 Wildlife Management MeatEater CA

Lawsuit Challenges CDFW Over Catalina Decision

Mar 11 Litigation / Wildlife Management Howl For Wildlife CA

Conservation Groups Challenge Removal of Wildlife Protections on 1.1 Million Acres of Public Land in Montana

Mar 2 Endangered Species / Litigation CounterPunch MT

High-Fence Ranches in Idaho Promised Biosecurity. Then Elk Started Escaping

Mar 2 CWD / Wildlife Management Outdoor Life ID

Another Group Files Lawsuit to Push US Fish and Wildlife to Protect Wolverines

Feb 27 Endangered Species / Litigation News From the States

RMEF Grants $400,000 to Support WAFWA Wildlife Movement Projects in Nevada, Washington, Wyoming

Feb 27 Habitat / Migration Corridors The Outdoor Wire NV / WA / WY

Public Lands Community Signals It Will Be Watching BLM Director Confirmation

Feb 24 Federal Issues Backcountry Hunters & Anglers

Researchers find genomics offers a faster path to restoring the American chestnut

Feb 24 Forest Restoration / Genomics Virginia Tech News VA

Service Provides Over $1.2 Billion to Support Fish and Wildlife Conservation and Outdoor Access

Feb 13 Federal Funding U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

NSSF Celebrates Nearly $1.3 Billion to States for Wildlife Conservation

Feb 17 Federal Funding NSSF

North Dakota Program Seeks to Transform Less Productive Cropland into Wildlife Habitat

Jan 29 Habitat Restoration North Dakota Monitor ND

Proposed Nationwide Conservation Benefit Agreement for Bumble Bees

Jan 22 Pollinators / Endangered Species U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

Federal Spending Bill That Strengthens Bird Conservation Signed Into Law

Jan 28 Federal Funding American Bird Conservancy

Featured Outdoor Writing

Radical Initiative to Ban Hunting and Fishing in Oregon Is One Step Closer to Making the Ballot

May 26 Outdoor Life Dac Collins OR Policy Analysis

Congress Targets The Roadless Rule

May 20 Field & Stream Travis Hall Policy Analysis

He Left the South to Find the Wild. The Land Never Let Him Go.

May 20 Southlands Russell Worth Parker Profile

For Once, The West Needs To Have a Serious Adult Conversation About Outdoor Wreckreation

May 19 Yellowstonian Todd Wilkinson Opinion

Backcountry Hunters and Anglers Sues Montana FWP Over Corner Crossing

May 14 Outdoor Life Natalie Krebs MT Policy Analysis

The Public Lands Rule Is Gone

May 15 RE:PUBLIC Christopher Keyes Policy Analysis

A top Interior official's former ranching clients wanted bison off public land. The Interior Secretary helped make it happen.

May 14 High Country News Jimmy Tobias & Chris D'Angelo MT Policy Analysis

Voices: A Utah monument faces a new kind of threat in Congress

May 13 The Salt Lake Tribune Ryan Gellert UT Opinion

Could Madison Valley of Montana Have a New Interstate Running Through It in Honor of Trump?

May 13 Yellowstonian Todd Wilkinson MT Policy Analysis

As National Parks Face Budget Cuts, Projects in D.C. Are Getting a Boost in Funding

May 4 Outdoor Life Christine Peterson Policy Analysis

BREAKING: Trump Administration Orders Dismantling of the U.S. Forest Service

Apr 1 More Than Just Parks Jim Pattiz Policy Analysis

National Park Service Announces New Hunting Opportunities to Control Invasive Species. Volunteers Could Save Taxpayers Millions

Mar 21 Outdoor Life Andrew McKean Policy Analysis

Oregon Has Found a New (and Clever) Way to Fund Wildlife Conservation

Mar 17 Outdoor Life Dac Collins OR Policy Analysis

'I Was Hooked.' This Volunteer-Led Program Has Introduced 100,000 New Duck Hunters Across North America

Mar 18 Outdoor Life Kris Millgate Hunter Recruitment

Interior Strips Protections from Alaska's Famed Dalton Highway, Opens Public Lands to State Transfer

Mar 11 Field & Stream Travis Hall AK Policy Analysis

Ohio Needs a Right to Hunt and Fish

Mar 2026 Howl For Wildlife Opinion

Colorado's Fur Fight Isn't About "Fur." It's About Who Controls Wildlife.

Mar 5 Howl For Wildlife Policy Analysis CO

How My Decision to Embrace Traditional Bowhunting Has Shaped Three Generations of Family

Mar 2 Outdoor Life Beka Garris

Podcast: Randy Newberg's Forecast for Our Public Lands Has Some Surprising Good News

Feb 26 Outdoor Life Podcast

Do Hunters Really Pay for Wildlife?

Nov 18 Howl For Wildlife Policy Analysis

Outdoor Life Podcast: Is Ryan Callaghan the Optimist Our Public Lands Need?

Nov 6 Outdoor Life Podcast

Trump Administration Opens the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to Drilling

Oct 24 Outdoor Life Natalie Krebs AK Policy Analysis

Trump's Major Coal Sales Flop in Wyoming and Montana

Oct 8 WyoFile Dustin Bleizeffer WY/MT Policy Analysis

2025 Public Lands and Waters Photo Contest

Sep 30 Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Photo Contest

Public Comment Opportunities

National Wildlife Refuge System: 2026–2027 Station-Specific Hunting and Sport Fishing Regulations

Congressional Public Lands Score

Proposed Fish and Wildlife Regulatory Revisions (deer, crossbow, coolwater sportfish, trapping, and more)

New Mexico: 2026 Biennial Review — State Threatened & Endangered Wildlife Species

National Issues

State Issues

Conservation News & Field Reports

Featured Outdoor Writing

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