By Elizabeth S. Kness.
In May of 2024, the Bureau of Land Management promulgated a rule that prioritized restoring natural resources on public lands and placed conservation on par with land uses like mining and grazing. The rule and lawsuit challenging it present an opportunity to analyze administrative agencies’ authority, how courts review agency course-changing, and the significant impact these legal questions can have on the public. This Comment argues that the agency’s rule change was legally permissible as an attempt to bring public land management practices closer to congressional goals and statutory requirements amidst changing circumstances.