WASHINGTON, D.C. — The executive order directs the Interior Department to consider whether the agency could make it easier to authorize killing gray wolves. It also directs federal authorities to urge states to remove protections for gray wolves and loosen local restrictions on wolf killing. The executive orders include measures allowing ranchers to protect their herds from gray wolves.

At the signing ceremony, Trump engaged with an Arizona rancher regarding the status of Mexican gray wolves. "You can shoot them as of today?" Trump asked. US Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins interjected to say that Interior Secretary Burgum "has to do a little magic, but yes."

A rancher told the president that people in Washington struggle with wolves, noting that in one case a pack of wolves caused a young girl to climb a tree to safety. "You’re allowed to go and take care of it," Trump told the rancher. "If you say so, sir," the rancher replied.

"We have no choice," he said. "I’ve been hearing about it for a long time."

Gray wolves are protected under the Endangered Species Act across most of their range in the lower 48, making it a federal crime to kill one in most cases. A 2022 federal court order left wolves protected by the Endangered Species Act across most of their range in the lower 48 states. The US Fish and Wildlife Service has previously attempted to de-list the gray wolf, a decision that is currently tied up in litigation.

In the northern Rocky Mountain states of Montana, Idaho and Wyoming, states manage wolves. In Minnesota, wolves are classified as 'threatened' rather than 'endangered'. The US Fish and Wildlife Service has not attempted to de-list the Mexican gray wolf.

The Mexican gray wolf was reintroduced to New Mexico and Arizona in 1998. The current recovery plan for Mexican gray wolves requires a population average of more than 320 animals for four years in a row before federal authorities consider de-listing. Arizona and New Mexico counted a total of 319 Mexican gray wolves at the end of 2025. The count of 319 Mexican gray wolves triggers the first year in which officials can start counting to make the case for de-listing.

Ranchers largely view wolves as a nuisance that threatens their profit margins. The federal government systematically trapped and killed wolves in the US through the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The federal government's trapping and killing of wolves pushed them to the brink of extirpation from the contiguous states, largely to protect livestock from predation.

Michael Robinson, an advocate with the Center for Biological Diversity, stated that Mexican gray wolves face threats from lack of genetic diversity. "We’re going to be fighting every step of the way, with information, with science," Robinson said. "That should be the core of the decision-making process."

"Once again, we see this administration attempting to override the checks and balances provided by bedrock environmental laws like the Endangered Species Act in order to create industry carveouts and distract from other bad policies that are proving unpopular," said Leia Barnett, New Mexico conservation lead for WildEarth Guardians. "Directing federal agencies to pressure states into rolling back their own wildlife protections isn’t just bad policy, it’s an attempt to bypass the very framework Congress built to keep species recovery decisions insulated from political whims," said Barnett.

Why It Matters

The executive order initiates a 90-day review period for Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to assess recovery criteria for both gray and Mexican gray wolves. This action follows previous delisting attempts for gray wolves that remain subject to litigation and a 2022 court order maintaining protections across much of the lower 48 states. The directive also urges states to remove local protections and loosen restrictions on wolf killing, potentially altering management practices in states where wolves are currently managed locally or classified as threatened.

The timing coincides with staffing reductions within the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which has dropped by 3,600 staff during President Donald Trump’s second term, including 1,900 scientists, biologists, foresters, and wildfire managers. Regional offices have seen sharp declines, with the New Mexico office losing 149 staff, a 47% decline, since 2024, and the Arizona office losing 83 staff, a 45% decline, since 2024. Additionally, federal agencies recently rescinded the regulatory definition of 'harm' in Endangered Species Act regulations, removing it from the Code of Federal Regulations.

Timeline

Congress repealed mandatory country-of-origin labeling requirements for beef and pork in 2015 after a series of World Trade Organization rulings involving challenges from Canada and Mexico.

Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 26 (Wednesday, February 7, 2024) noted that since delisting, gray wolves in the NRM have been managed by the States and Tribes.

What's New

Later reporting indicates that in 2026, President Trump signed an executive order directing the Interior Department to consider de-listing gray wolves and Mexican gray wolves from the Endangered Species Act, similar to his first term when he delisted gray wolves but not the more endangered Mexican wolves. The executive order directs Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to make a determination as to whether the gray wolf and the Mexican wolf have met the recovery criteria for delisting or downlisting under the Endangered Species Act within 90 days.

Additional context shows the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service rescinded the regulatory definition of 'harm' in their Endangered Species Act regulations, removing it from the Code of Federal Regulations in Title 50 parts 17 and 222. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in New Mexico has lost 149 staff, a 47% decline, since 2024. He said it will be easy regarding country-of-origin labeling.

How Sources Differ

Sources differ on the status of endangered species protections. A federal court order from 2022 states that wolves remain protected by the Endangered Species Act across most of their range in the lower 48 states. Conversely, the executive order signed by Trump directs the interior department to consider de-listing gray wolves from the Endangered Species Act.

There is also divergence regarding the legal standing of gray wolves. The executive order signed by Trump directs the interior department to consider de-listing gray wolves from the Endangered Species Act. However, the Endangered Species Act itself establishes that gray wolves are protected across most of their range in the lower 48, making it a federal crime to kill one in most cases.

Sources also present different metrics for gray wolf management. The Mexican Gray Wolf Recovery Plan specifies that the current recovery plan for Mexican gray wolves requires a population average of more than 320 animals for four years in a row before federal authorities consider de-listing.