Endangered Species Act Signed, Industry Groups Immediately Begin Weakening Campaign

On December 28, 1973, President Nixon signed the Endangered Species Act (ESA) into law after it passed the Senate 92-0 and the House 355-4. The near-unanimous votes masked deep industry opposition that would fuel decades of efforts to weaken the law through administrative action, litigation, and legislative amendments.

The ESA’s sweeping protections made it the world’s strongest wildlife protection law. It prohibited federal agencies from taking actions that jeopardize listed species, required designation of “critical habitat,” and banned the “take” (killing, harming, or harassing) of endangered species by anyone. These provisions alarmed extractive industries.

Industry groups had underestimated the law’s implications during passage. The American Mining Congress, National Forest Products Association, and American Farm Bureau Federation soon realized the ESA could block mining, logging, and development projects across millions of acres. They began organizing opposition immediately.

The Pacific Legal Foundation, founded in 1973 with funding from the California Chamber of Commerce, became a key vehicle for anti-ESA litigation. The organization would file dozens of lawsuits challenging species listings, critical habitat designations, and enforcement actions over subsequent decades.

Industry’s strategy focused on multiple fronts: funding scientific challenges to species listings, lobbying for “economic impact” exemptions, supporting the 1978 “God Squad” amendment allowing cabinet-level overrides, and pushing for “regulatory reform” that would weaken enforcement. While unable to repeal the ESA, these efforts succeeded in delaying listings, shrinking critical habitat designations, and limiting enforcement resources, demonstrating how industry can undermine strong environmental laws through sustained administrative and legal pressure.