Federal wildlife agency must now weigh state data in species protection decisions
H.R. 9184 — Local Data for Better Conservation Act · Filed by Lauren Boebert (R-CO) · 6 cosponsors · Introduced Jun 8, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill amends the Endangered Species Act to require the federal government to accept and integrate state-collected data when deciding whether to list or delist species as endangered or threatened. It does not mandate that states collect data or that federal decisions follow state recommendations, only that state data be considered and incorporated into federal listing determinations.
Why we flagged it
The bill is a narrow procedural change to the Endangered Species Act's listing process, requiring federal consideration of state data without altering the Secretary's ultimate authority or the substantive criteria for listing decisions.
What the text implies
- No standard is set for how state data must be weighted relative to federal data, creating discretion that could allow state economic interests to influence federal conservation decisions without transparency.
- States with extractive industries (timber, mining, oil/gas) may systematically provide data downplaying species risk, and the bill does not require disclosure of state funding sources or conflicts of interest.
- The bill does not define 'integrate'—federal agencies could satisfy the requirement by merely acknowledging state data without substantively altering their analysis.
- Delisting decisions may be particularly vulnerable to state pressure, as states often oppose protections that limit land use; the bill applies equally to both listing and delisting.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
Citizens may benefit if state data improves listing accuracy and prevents both false positives (unnecessary listings) and false negatives (missed protections). However, the bill creates no enforceable standard for how state data must be weighted or integrated, risking that state data—often influenced by local economic interests—could dilute federal conservation standards without a corresponding public-interest safeguard.
Who stands to gain
- extractive industries (timber, mining, oil/gas, agriculture)
- real estate development
- state wildlife agencies (potential funding/influence expansion)
Named in the bill
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Marine Fisheries Service, State wildlife agencies, Endangered Species Act of 1973
Where it stands
6 cosponsors: 6 Republicans.
- Jun 8, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Jun 8, 2026 — Referred to House Committee on Natural Resources · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Money around this bill
1 lobbying clients named this bill on 1 disclosure filings across 1 quarter, Jun 2026 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $0 in lobbying spend. A filing names 34 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.
More lobbying clients named this bill than 0% of bills with at least one filing.
Lauren Boebert, the sponsor, reported $136,610 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.
- Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council — $0 on 1 filing
Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 7, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (407 characters) on Jun 16, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 16,222 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
Money — Senate Lobbying Disclosure Act filings whose specific-issue field names this bill for quarters ending Jun 2026 to Jun 2026. A filing's amount is reported whole beside the median number of bills a filing names; it is never divided across them. PAC receipts are FEC-reported contributions to the sponsor's candidate committee in the 2026 cycle.
As of — lobbying records through Jul 7, 2026 · page rendered 2026-10-20.
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