FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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BALTIMORE, MD – Attorney General Anthony G. Brown today co-led a
coalition of 16 attorneys general in sending a comment letter to the Trump administration
opposing a proposed rule by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine
Fisheries Service (collectively, the Services) to rescind the regulatory definitions of “harm”
under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA). Those regulations currently protect imperiled
species from habitat degradation that significantly interferes with essential biological functions
like feeding and reproduction. The proposal would eliminate those protections, leaving an
ominous gap in the regulations that protect our most vulnerable species.
“This weakening of habitat protections under the Endangered Species Act puts Maryland's
natural resources and the many species that rely on the Chesapeake Bay at serious risk,” said
Attorney General Brown. “We will strongly oppose any effort to roll back these essential
environmental protections that have helped save wildlife for over 50 years.”
The ESA has been recognized as “the most comprehensive legislation for the preservation of
endangered species ever enacted by any nation.” Enacted by Congress in 1973 with bipartisan
support, the ESA provides a national program for the protection and recovery of endangered and
threatened species and their habitats. Since then, the ESA has prevented the extinction of 99% of
species receiving its protection and helped restore populations of numerous others, including our
national bird and symbol, the bald eagle.
In their letter, the attorneys general argue that finalizing the proposed rule would significantly
reduce protections for vulnerable species making it much harder to save such species from
extinction, which is contrary to the plain language and purposes of the ESA. The proposed
rescission also contradicts longstanding Supreme Court precedent and other case law upholding
the existing definitions.
The recovery of many of Maryland’s most imperiled species requires strong federal action to
ensure conservation measures are implemented across a species’ entire range.
Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown co-led the letter with California Attorney General
Rob Bonta and Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell. They were joined by the
attorneys general of Arizona, Connecticut, Colorado, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, New Jersey,
New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington.
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