Sponsors (3)
The bill reduces regulatory burdens and permitting costs for landowners and local governments in affected Texas watersheds but does so by removing federal protections for six mussel species, increasing extinction risk and the likelihood of degraded water quality while cutting off related federal conservation support.
Landowners, developers, and water users in the affected Texas watersheds will face fewer federal restrictions on land and water use near the six mussel habitats, making projects easier to plan and carry out.
State and local agencies will avoid new compliance costs and permitting delays tied to the federal endangered-species rule, reducing administrative burdens and permitting time.
The six listed mussel species will lose federal endangered/threatened protections, increasing their risk of further decline or extinction.
Residents and downstream water users in and beyond the affected watersheds face greater risk of degraded water quality and loss of ecosystem services (e.g., clean waterways), harming health and local livelihoods.
State and local governments and conservation partners will lose access to federal conservation funding and recovery actions tied to listed status, limiting resources for habitat restoration and species management.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Invalidates the Fish & Wildlife Service final rule that listed six Texas freshwater mussel species and designated their critical habitat, removing that rule's protections.
Official title: To provide that the final rule of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service titled "Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Endangered Species Status With Critical Habitat for Guadalupe Fatmucket, Texas Fatmucket, Guadalupe Orb, Texas Pimpleback, Balcones Spike, and False Spike, and Threatened Species Status With Section 4(d) Rule and Critical Habitat for Texas Fawnsfoot" shall have no force or effect.
Introduced January 31, 2025 by Jodey Cook Arrington · Last progress January 31, 2025
Cancels a recent U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rule that had listed six Texas freshwater mussel species as endangered or threatened and designated critical habitat and a Section 4(d) rule for one species. The bill declares that the June 4, 2024 final rule has no force or effect, removing the regulatory protections and consequences established by that rule for those mussel species and their designated habitat.