The Trump administration has pushed through an “effective dismantling” of the Department of Education through massive layoffs, a lawsuit filed Thursday in Massachusetts federal court alleges.

On March 11, the agency announced a “nearly 50%” reduction in force (RIF) with a press release. Later that same day, Secretary of Education Linda McMahon told The Hill those planned terminations were the “first step” toward the “total shutdown” of her entire department.

The plaintiffs, in their 53-page lawsuit, say the agency’s plans are “equivalent to incapacitating key, statutorily-mandated functions” that cause “immense damage” to the educational systems of several states. The complaint alleges the would-be federal firing spree is illegal — in violation of both the U.S. Constitution and federal law.

Moreover, the filing argues, the ongoing and upcoming reductions in staffing amount to an unlawful end-run around congressional authority in order to advance President Donald Trump’s stated goal of shuttering the department in de facto if not de jure terms.

WASHINGTON – The Department of the Interior announced today that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has published proposed updates to strengthen conservation and management of greater sage-grouse habitat on public lands, informed by the best available science, collaborative work with states, and input from local, Tribal and federal partners. The proposed updates, outlined in a final environmental impact statement and amendments to 77 resource management plans, incorporate new sage-grouse conservation science and lessons learned and accommodate changing resource conditions while increasing implementation flexibility. The proposals balance a consistent west-wide management approach with unique policies in the individual states that are responsible for managing wildlife populations.

 

 

Updated habitat management plans will protect greater sage-grouse habitat in 10 Western states. Sage-grouse populations have continued to decline, largely due to habitat loss exacerbated by climate impacts such as drought, increasingly intense wildfires, and invasive species. Conserving sagebrush habitat benefits more than 350 other wildlife species and supports the livelihoods and traditions of Western communities. Species like elk, mule deer, pronghorn and pygmy rabbit rely on the same habitat to survive, and sagebrush lands contain headwaters for some of the West’s major river systems and the aquatic species they sustain.  

“Guided by the best available science, we are committed to the continued balance in our multi-use mandate for America’s public lands,” said Secretary Deb Haaland. “For too long, a false choice has been presented for land management that aims to pit development against conservation. This Administration’s collaborative work has demonstrated that we can do both successfully. Through collaborative work in local communities, developed over decades, we are presenting science-based and thoughtful proposals to protect the greater sage-grouse and its habitat.”

The BLM manages the largest single share of greater sage-grouse habitat in the United States—nearly 65 million acres of 145 million total acres. The proposal released today builds on a number of collaborative efforts undertaken by the Biden-Harris administration – including the Public Lands Rule, renewable energy rule, and the proposed Western Solar Plan – to strengthen protection for sagebrush habitat while retaining flexibility to coordinate with state government partners and account for variations in local habitat conditions. Today’s proposal will help ensure that other uses of BLM sagebrush lands, including clean energy projects, move forward in a manner that limits impacts to sensitive resources and can also help combat climate change—a main driver of greater sage-grouse habitat loss.

“This remarkable species and the people who live, work, and play alongside it deserve management that will sustain sagebrush habitat across the West for years to come,” said BLM Director Tracy Stone-Manning. “Our environmental analysis, aided by a wealth of information from our partners, indicates that these proposed updates—which are the result of decades of sustained collaborative efforts—are the best way to ensure the health of these lands and local economies now and into the future.”

The BLM considered roughly 38,000 comments from the public on the draft environmental analysis, along with information shared by state, local, Tribal and federal partners during more than 100 meetings held over two years. States also contributed data and scientific information that helped frame direction on adaptive management and mitigation requirements and supported updates to the boundaries of habitat management areas. The BLM engaged in government-to-government consultation and held informational briefings for Tribal governments throughout the process. Planning documents are available for review at the BLM National NEPA Register.

Protests of the proposed amendments may be filed until Dec. 16, 2024 at the BLM National NEPA Register. Following resolution of valid protests and responses to governors’ reviews for consistency with state and local plans, the BLM will issue Records of Decision for each state where habitat management plans are being updated.

In addition to management decisions guided by the habitat plans, the BLM is actively restoring and conserving sagebrush habitat across the West through the President’s Investing in America agenda. For example, as part of the Department’s new Sagebrush Keystone Initiative, the Department has identified “Sagebrush Collaborative Restoration Landscapes” as areas to collaborate with ranchers, state and local leaders, Tribal Nations, conservation and sportsmen organizations, the outdoor recreation economy, private landowners and others to strategically deliver restoration actions in sagebrush country for the people, wildlife, and economies that depend on them. The Department’s National Seed Strategy Keystone Initiative is also devoting resources to ensure a ready source of native plant seeds to further enhance landscape resilience and has identified five areas of greater sage-grouse range in which to fund habitat restoration and conservation.

WASHINGTON — The Department of the Interior and National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) today announced $11.8 million for 10 projects in seven states that will help restore habitat connectivity and secure key migration corridors for wildlife in the American West. A total of $3 million in grants and $8.8 million in matching contributions will be invested to protect migratory species like elk, mule deer, and pronghorn and their habitats in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Wyoming. 

“Healthy habitats and interconnected spaces to live and roam are key for the sustainability of species,” said Secretary Deb Haaland. “The Biden-Harris administration is strengthening public-private partnerships and employing an all-of-government approach to ensure the conservation of fish and wildlife in the West and across America through the protection of key migration corridors and habitats.” 

Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Director Tracy Stone-Manning and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) Director Martha Williams highlighted the announcement at the 89th North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference in Grand Rapids, Michigan. 

The grants are made possible through the Western Big Game Seasonal Habitat and Migration Corridors Fund, which is administered by NFWF in-part through annual appropriations funding from the BLM, FWS, and the Department of Agriculture. The funding supports Secretary’s Order 3362, which seeks to enhance and improve the quality of big-game winter range and migration corridor habitat on federal lands. Today’s funding builds on nearly $25 million in funding the Department and NFWF announced in 2021, 2022 and 2023. This work supports the President’s America the Beautiful initiative, which aims to conserve, connect and restore 30 percent of our lands and waters by 2030. 

Today’s announcement supplements historic funding through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, which is supporting critical projects to restore habitats, strengthen landscape resilience, and put create good-paying jobs to restore America’s lands and waters in partnership with Tribes, private landowners, hunting and conservation organizations, and state wildlife management agencies. 

Last month, Secretary Haaland announced more than $157 million from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to restore our nation’s lands and waters through locally led, landscape-scale restoration projects. The funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will support 206 ecosystem restoration projects in 48 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Territories and will advance the Department’s ongoing work across several restoration and resilience programs. 

Projects receiving grants and matching contributions are listed below: 

ARIZONA  

Managing Woody Invasives to Improve Habitat Quality on Perrin Ranch State Lands Grassland  

Grantee: Arizona Elk Society 

Grant Amount: $130,000 

Matching Funds: $130,000 

Total Project Amount: $260,000 

Improve winter habitat quality for migrant and resident mule deer, elk and pronghorn. Project will restore a minimum of 650 acres of grasslands in Northern Arizona by managing the encroachment of woody invasives. 

Restoring Beaver Creek Watershed to Improve Habitat Connectivity  

Grantee: Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement and Power District 

Grant Amount: $489,500 

Matching Funds: $3,376,500 

Total Project Amount: $3,866,000 

Restore wildlife habitat and connectivity, reduce wildfire risk, protect water supplies, communities, infrastructure and improve forest resiliency. Project will restore approximately 3,920 acres by removing invading woody species from grasslands and former healthy woodlands that will allow native grass, browse, and forb species to return. 

CALIFORNIA 

Restoring Steven’s Prairie to Enhance Elk Habitat and Establish New Herds  

Grantee: Yurok Tribe 

Grant Amount: $181,393 

Matching Funds: $181,393 

Total Project Amount: $362,786 

Enhance meadow habitat for Roosevelt elk and provide a stopover site both for dispersing elk from saturated populations and for the establishment of new herds on Yurok lands. Project will survey and identify priority habitat in 160 acres; restore 80 acres of degraded prairie through removal of encroaching trees and invasive plants; establish a 25-acre fuel break along the perimeter of the restored site; and place 440 acres under various planning stages to improve management. 

COLORADO 

Enhancing Elk Habitat Through Vegetation Treatments in Hay Flats 

Grantee: US Forest Service 

Grant Amount: $200,000 

Matching Funds: $199,896 

Total Project Amount: $399,896 

Enhance elk habitat through vegetation treatments in mountain shrub and aspen communities within the vicinity of Hay Flats. Project will improve 2.25 acres of fencing, treat 430 acres with mechanical methods would create a mosaic of snowberry regrowth and allow understory species to take hold, and treat 220 acres with mastication and hand felling to increase forage, cover, and movement opportunities for elk in spring production areas, summer and winter habitat, and movement corridors. 

Protecting Migration Corridors via the Wolf Mountain VII Conservation Easement  

Grantee: Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation 

Grant Amount: $100,000 

Matching Funds: $1,977,882 

Total Project Amount: $2,077,882 

Conserve vital aspen woodlands, sagebrush, and riparian habitat, as well as a migration corridor and pathway for two of Colorado’s largest migratory herds. Project will permanently protect approximately 1,630 acres of migration corridors for elk and winter range for mule deer, secure habitat connectivity through the valley bottom and highly developable lands near State Highway 40, protect five stream miles, and support a host of other wildlife, including greater sage grouse.  

IDAHO 

Modifying Fencing to Improve the Migration Route Across Highway 28 

Grantee: The Mule Deer Foundation 

Grant Amount: $317,922 

Matching Funds: $300,000 

Total Project Amount: $617,922 

Support passage-success of migratory mule deer and elk, reduce animal-vehicle collisions, and simultaneously increase safety for motorists. Project will extend a wildlife funnel fence project on Highway 28 by reconnecting three miles of corridor, improve 10 miles of fencing, remove two miles of fencing, and increase the passage success rate to 95%.

MONTANA 

Collaborating with Montana Grassland Partnership to Improve Big Game Migration 

Grantee: Ranchers Stewardship Alliance, Inc. 

Grant Amount: $275,000 

Matching Funds: $275,000 

Total Project Amount: $550,000 

Support, connect, and contribute to the partnership of big game migration work being done under the umbrella of the Montana Grassland Partnership as part of the Ranchers Stewardship Alliance (RSA) Conservation Committee. Project will work to improve nine miles of fencing, remove nine miles of unneeded fencing, restore 1,000 acres of grassland for added habitat and add a Conservation Director position with RSA to better serve the RSA project area and collaborate within the Montana Grassland Partnership. 

OREGON 

Protecting Migration Habitat via a Fee Title Transfer to the Warm Springs Indian Reservation  

Grantee: Oregon Wildlife Heritage Foundation 

Grant Amount: $199,998 

Matching Funds: $716,350 

Total Project Amount: $916,348 

Protect migration corridors in high use areas in the Metolious winter range. Project will transfer 300-acre acquisition to the Confederated Tribe of the Warm Springs Indian Reservation. 

Treating Invasives to Improve Migration Corridors for Elk and Nesting Habitat for Sage Grouse (OR) 

Grantee: Crook County Soil and Water Conservation District 

Grant Amount: $190,609 

Matching Funds: $213,586 

Total Project Amount: $404,195 

Enhance understory conditions in sagebrush habitats, which will improve conditions for a host of species including sagebrush obligates and improve migration and seasonal habitat for a variety of wildlife species. Project will restore 415 acres of migration habitat for elk and mule deer as well as seasonal habitat for sage grouse through the removal of woody invasives.

WYOMING 

Restoring Big Game Migration Corridors for Bates Hole, Dubois and Platte Valley Mule Deer Herds 

Grantee: Wyoming Game and Fish Department 

Grant Amount: $961,250 

Matching Funds: $961,250 

Total Project Amount: $1,922,500 

Improve forage resources and connectivity between seasonal ranges for mule deer and a wide variety of other wildlife. Project will implement 13,530 acres of invasive weed treatments, modify 46 miles of fences and restore 150 acres of habitat. 

A man is accused of threatening a U.S. congressperson and the politician’s children. The U.S. Department of Justice did not identify the target in either court documents or a press release, but Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA, 14th District) said it is him.

“No threat is going to stop me from representing my constituents,” he wrote on X, the site formerly known as Twitter. “MAGA Republicans have chosen violence over voting and this is what it looks like. But I’m not going away and neither should you.”

No threat is going to stop me from representing my constituents. MAGA Republicans have chosen violence over voting and this is what it looks like. But I’m not going away and neither should you. https://t.co/A4GcATb5GR

— Rep. Eric Swalwell (@RepSwalwell) January 4, 2024

The defendant, Florida man Michael Shapiro, 72, allegedly left five voicemail message for Swalwell at the congressman’s Washington D.C. office on Dec. 19, 2023.