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Interior Department launches MABA 250 initiative to guide conservation and outdoor access

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Key takeaways

  • The Make America Beautiful Again (MABA) commission launched its MABA 250 strategic initiative on Feb. 11, 2026, to guide conservation policies over the next 250 years.
  • The commission is chaired by U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and convened at the White House to review federal accomplishments since its July 3, 2025 establishment.
  • MABA 250 priorities include balancing stewardship and economic growth, expanding public access for hunting and recreation, voluntary conservation, species recovery and reducing permitting delays.
  • The administration said it will streamline permitting and implement changes to environmental policy execution (including NEPA) to reduce bureaucratic delays.
  • Interior announced refocusing roughly $8 million of grant programming to support big-game winter range and migration corridors.
  • The commission plans to formally roll out a report of its accomplishments in conjunction with the opening of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library during the America 250 commemorations.

Follow Up Questions

What is the legal authority and structure of the Make America Beautiful Again (MABA) Commission?Expand

Established by President Trump’s July 3, 2025 executive order (Executive Order 14313), the MABA Commission is an executive-branch commission chaired by the Secretary of the Interior (Doug Burgum) with the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy as Executive Director. Its membership, per the order, includes cabinet-level officials or their designees (e.g., Defense, Agriculture, EPA, OMB, CEA, White House chiefs), and it is directed to advise and assist the President on conservation policy, monitor implementation, and facilitate interagency coordination. The commission’s legal authority therefore derives from the President’s executive-order authority; the EO directs implementation “consistent with applicable law” and assigns Department of the Interior administrative responsibilities (including bearing publication costs).

What exactly does the MABA 250 initiative consist of — regulatory changes, funding allocations, targets, or policy guidance?Expand

MABA 250 is presented as a strategic, interagency policy initiative — a results-driven framework and agenda to guide conservation policy over the next 250 years. It emphasizes policy guidance and coordination (expanding access for recreation and hunting, voluntary conservation, species recovery), targeted funding shifts (DOI says it will refocus about $8 million in grant programming to big‑game winter range and migration corridors), and operational changes such as streamlining permitting and improving NEPA implementation. The announcement does not, however, list new statutory rules; it functions mainly as an executive/agency directive and strategy rather than a specific new regulation with numeric regulatory targets.

How will the administration define and implement the promised cuts to "red tape" and what specific changes to NEPA or permitting are proposed?Expand

The DOI press release states the administration will “streamline permitting” and “improve the implementation of environmental policies, like NEPA,” but it does not describe concrete rule changes or the legal mechanisms. As of the press release there are no detailed, public proposals in that announcement specifying exact NEPA amendments, categorical exclusions, time limits, or permit‑processing rules — only a stated commitment to cut delays and coordinate interagency permitting.

How much federal funding is allocated to MABA 250 overall and what are the funding sources?Expand

The DOI press release says Interior will “refocus approximately $8 million of grant programming on supporting big‑game winter range and migration corridors.” The release does not name the individual grant programs by title; it simply describes the reorientation of roughly $8 million of Interior grant funds toward those objectives.

Which specific grant programs are being refocused for the approximately $8 million toward big-game winter range and migration corridors?Expand

The press release does not identify the specific grant programs that are being refocused for the roughly $8 million (it only states that Interior will refocus about $8 million of grant programming toward big‑game winter range and migration corridors). Public documentation naming the exact grant accounts or program titles was not provided in that announcement.

What specific roles and responsibilities will Interior, EPA, the Army Corps, USDA, Commerce, and the Council on Environmental Quality have in carrying out MABA 250?Expand

The commission is an interagency body created by the President’s executive order and the DOI statement lists agencies that are participating or quoted (Interior as Chair, EPA, Army Corps of Engineers/Civil Works, USDA/Agriculture, Commerce, Council on Environmental Quality, Defense, and others). The EO assigns the Commission to advise the President, monitor implementation, and facilitate interagency coordination; operational implementation — e.g., carrying out projects, administering grants, permitting decisions, or NEPA reviews — remains with the agencies that hold statutory authority (Interior bureaus, EPA, Army Corps, USDA, Commerce, CEQ), which the Commission is directed to coordinate and advise rather than to supplant. The DOI release does not allocate detailed agency-by-agency roles or new statutory duties beyond coordination and streamlining directives in the EO and press release.

When will the commission's formal report be published and what metrics or benchmarks will it include to measure progress?Expand

The DOI release says the Commission’s report of accomplishments “will formally be rolled out in conjunction with the opening of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library commemorating America 250.” It does not give a calendar date or publishable schedule in the announcement, nor does it provide a list of metrics or benchmarks; the press release states the Commission will present accomplishments but provides no methodological metrics or progress benchmarks in that release.

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