The United States Department of Agriculture (Department) is proposing to amend regulations governing the Directive System for the United States Forest Service (Forest Service or Agency); the scope of notice and comment requirements for the formulation of standards, criteria, and guidelines applicable to Forest Service programs; and associated agency procedures. These amendments enhance Agency employees' discretion to allow innovation in program implementation to account for the unique ecological conditions of affected landscapes and changing social and economic needs.
Comments close Jul 31, 2026
The United States Department of Agriculture (Department), Forest Service (Forest Service or Agency), is proposing to amend its land use regulations to exempt administrative site leases from the regulations for special uses. The purpose of this deregulatory action is to better align Forest Service leasing activities with private real estate market practices.
Comments close Jun 5, 2026
The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service (Agency), is proposing to revise its regulations governing occupancy and use of the surface of National Forest System lands in connection with prospecting, exploration, development, mining, processing, and reclamation and reasonably incident uses authorized by U.S. mining laws and the Organic Administration Act of 1897. Regulatory revisions are needed to improve the efficiency and transparency of Forest Service regulation of locatable mineral operations conducted on National Forest System lands under the mining laws, and to minimize, to the fullest extent practicable, adverse impacts on surface resources. In addition, the revisions will support Federal policy to secure reliable and sustainable supplies of strategic and critical minerals in the United States.
Comments close Apr 21, 2026
This notice extends the public comment period for the review of the Federal Subsistence Management Program (Program) that was announced in the Federal Register on December 15, 2025. This extension provides additional time for stakeholders to submit comments.
Comments close Mar 30, 2026
This proposed rule would update regulations for fish and shellfish seasons, harvest limits, methods, and means related to taking of fish and shellfish for subsistence uses during the 2027-2028 and 2028-2029 regulatory years. The Federal Subsistence Board (the Board) is on a schedule of completing the process of revising subsistence take of fish and shellfish regulations in odd-numbered years and subsistence take of wildlife regulations in even-numbered years; public proposal and review processes take place during the preceding year. The Board also addresses customary and traditional use determinations during the applicable cycle and rural determinations every other fish and shellfish regulatory cycle. When final, the resulting rulemaking will replace the existing subsistence fish and shellfish taking regulations. This proposed rule could also amend the general regulations on subsistence taking of fish and wildlife. During this rulemaking cycle, the Board will accept proposals for rural determinations that will be decided by the Board during the subsequent fish and shellfish regulatory cycle.
Comments close Apr 3, 2026
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Forest Service is proposing to amend its Project-Level Predecisional Administrative Review Process regulations. These regulations establish the process by which the public may file objections seeking administrative review for projects and activities implementing land management plans on national forests. The Forest Service is amending these regulations to consolidate and streamline processes, increase efficiency, and better align with the Agency's statutory obligations and recent rescissions and revisions to National Environmental Policy Act regulations.
Comments close Mar 9, 2026
The United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service (Forest Service or Agency) is issuing a final rule revising the definition of a ski area in its special use regulations. The revised definition aligns more closely with the Forest Service's statutory authority for ski area administration and reduces burden on the agency and special use permit holders.
The United States Department of Agriculture (Department), Forest Service (Forest Service or Agency), is issuing this final rule to update its special uses regulations on filming and still photography to be consistent with the new requirements in the Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences Act (EXPLORE Act or Act). The technical revisions include adding a statutory reference to the EXPLORE Act and updating terminology and definitions to be consistent with the Act.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA or Department) is finalizing revisions to its regulations governing Federal oil and gas resources within the National Forest System (NFS). The Department is making these revisions to update and modernize its existing regulations. In addition, conforming technical amendments to other parts of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) affected by this rule are also being updated. The regulations revise the process for analyzing whether the USDA, Forest Service will consent to making certain lands available for oil and gas leasing by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The regulations also clarify requirements for conducting lease operations and revise procedures concerning monitoring operator compliance with all applicable terms and conditions of leasing. The revised regulations will apply to operations on both existing and future leases.
Title VIII of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980 (ANILCA) requires a subsistence priority for rural Alaska residents on federal public lands in Alaska, currently administered jointly by Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture (the Secretaries). The Office of the Senior Advisor to the Secretary of the Interior for Alaska Affairs and the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture are conducting a targeted review of the Federal Subsistence Management Program (Program) with joint recommendations for action to ensure the Program effectively and efficiently meets the needs of Alaska residents and the Secretaries' obligations under ANILCA. The focus of this review is on recent regulatory and organizational changes to the Program, along with discrete areas of interest. The scope of this review is intentionally targeted to build upon and evaluate the most recent Program review and changes with the benefit of the experience gained through implementation of those changes to date. A subsequent process is anticipated for any regulatory changes to the Program based on this review.
This final rule revises regulations for fish and shellfish seasons, harvest limits, methods, and means related to taking of fish and shellfish for subsistence uses during the 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 regulatory years. The Federal Subsistence Board (hereafter referred to as "the Board") is on a schedule of completing the process of revising subsistence taking of fish and shellfish regulations in odd- numbered years and subsistence taking of wildlife regulations in even- numbered years; public proposal and review processes take place during the preceding year. The Board also addresses customary and traditional use determinations during the applicable cycle. When final, the resulting rulemaking amends the existing subsistence fish and shellfish taking regulations. This final rule also revises the nonrural determinations, updates the regulations on subsistence taking of wildlife resulting from final Board action on a wildlife proposal to conduct an ANILCA section 804 user prioritization for hunting the Nelchina caribou herd, change Nelchina caribou herd subsistence hunts to "may be announced," and delegate authority to manage these hunts. Lastly, this rule corrects an error from a recent final rule.
This rule transfers the Federal Subsistence Management Program regulations for the Department of the Interior from 50 CFR part 100 to 43 CFR part 51 to align with the transfer of the Office of Subsistence Management from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management, and Budget. This rule also revises the program's regulations for both the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture to reflect the recent organizational changes and make administrative corrections.
The United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service (Forest Service or Agency) is making purely technical, clarifying revisions to its existing regulations relating to the conversion of ski area authorizations on National Forest System lands (NFS) pursuant to the National Forest Ski Area Permit Act of 1986. The revisions remove the requirements for conversion of ski area authorizations because all ski area authorizations on NFS have been converted or issued under the National Forest Ski Area Permit Act, rendering this provision obsolete.
The United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service (Forest Service or Agency) is making purely technical, clarifying revisions to its existing regulations governing the establishment and maintenance of grazing advisory boards on National Forest System lands (NFS). The revisions remove the provisions for grazing advisory boards to ensure consistency of the existing regulations with governing statutes.
This proposed rule would establish regulations for hunting and trapping seasons, harvest limits, and methods and means related to taking of wildlife for subsistence uses during the 2026-27 and 2027-28 regulatory years. The Federal Subsistence Board (hereafter referred to as "the Board") is on a schedule of completing the process of revising subsistence taking of wildlife regulations in even-numbered years and subsistence taking of fish and shellfish regulations in odd- numbered years; public proposal and review processes take place during the preceding year. The Board also addresses customary and traditional use determinations during the applicable cycle. When final, the resulting rulemaking will replace the existing subsistence wildlife taking regulations. This proposed rule could also amend the general regulations on subsistence taking of fish and wildlife.
