WASHINGTON, D.C., April 21, 2026 — New Yorkers from across the state are in Washington this week to hand-deliver a letter to members of Congress urging them to oppose the ESA Amendments Act of 2025 (H.R. 1897), legislation they say would undermine protections for New York’s wildlife, habitats, and the communities and businesses that depend on them.
Representing communities from New York City and Long Island to the Hudson Valley, the Adirondacks, and Western New York, the delegation’s message is clear: the Endangered Species Act is not only one of America’s most effective conservation laws, it is also vital to New York’s economy, outdoor heritage, and quality of life. The letter highlights the direct connection between wildlife protection and the state’s tourism industry, recreation economy, fisheries, and natural resources.
“New York’s wildlife is part of who we are,” said Tara Thornton, Director of Institutional Development for the Endangered Species Coalition. “From piping plovers on our beaches and monarch butterflies in our fields to North Atlantic right whales off our coast and hellbenders in our rivers, threatened and endangered species are woven into the landscapes and waters that New Yorkers cherish. New Yorkers are coming to Capitol Hill to remind lawmakers that the Endangered Species Act works — and that weakening it would put both wildlife and communities at risk.”
New York is home to species that rely on the Endangered Species Act and strong federal protections, including the federally threatened piping plover, which nests on New York beaches, the eastern hellbender, a powerful indicator of clean water in streams and rivers, and migratory wildlife such as the North Atlantic right whale and monarch butterfly that are part of the region’s broader ecological story. Their habitats support recreation, tourism, coastal stewardship, and the health of ecosystems that communities across the state depend on.
The letter also points to the law’s record of success. For more than 50 years, the Endangered Species Act has prevented the extinction of 99% of listed species and helped drive wildlife recovery across the country. On New York’s shores, piping plovers are one example of how ESA protections and local stewardship can make a difference. Once reduced to perilously low numbers, the Atlantic Coast population rebounded from just 476 breeding pairs in 1985 to 1,818 pairs by 2019, a sign of the progress that is possible when strong safeguards remain in place.
The New Yorkers’ letter warns that H.R. 1897 would weaken recovery efforts by shrinking critical habitat protections, limiting public accountability, preventing balanced mitigation for harm to listed species, and shifting too much responsibility onto under-resourced state agencies. The delegation argues that species recovery requires strong national standards and science-based decision-making, not a patchwork of weaker protections.
“For over 50 years, the Endangered Species Act has helped bring species back from the brink and protected the natural systems all life depends on,” said Susan Holmes, Executive Director of the Endangered Species Coalition. “Congress should be strengthening this law, not dismantling it. New Yorkers understand that protecting wildlife also protects clean water, healthy coastlines, local economies, and our shared future.”
The Endangered Species Coalition and New York signers are urging members of Congress to reject H.R. 1897 and uphold the Endangered Species Act’s science-based framework.
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The Endangered Species Coalition is a national coalition of 475 member organizations and 525,000+ activists working together to protect and recover at-risk threatened and endangered species and to defend the Endangered Species Act and other wildlife laws and policies.