The State of Texas and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reached a settlement, reversing the endangered species listing for the dunes sagebrush lizard while a new evaluation is conducted.
The dunes sagebrush lizard inhabits portions of West Texas, including the oil-rich Permian Basin.
The Biden administration listed the species as endangered in May 2024, citing threats from oil and gas development and climate change.
Texas sued in September 2024, arguing the listing relied on an indirect habitat model rather than population data, used a 1998 well-pad-density study that predates horizontal drilling, and ignored ongoing state conservation efforts.
The state also argued the listing impeded oil production and interfered with efforts to plug abandoned oil wells.
“The Biden-Harris Administration’s unlawful misuse of environmental law is a backdoor attempt to undermine Texas’s oil and gas industries which help keep the lights on for America,” Attorney General Ken Paxton said when announcing the lawsuit.
According to the settlement, the Fish and Wildlife Service agreed its evaluation was “incomplete and, therefore, potentially inaccurate” and “failed to properly consider habitat restoration.”
The settlement concludes it is “necessary to reconsider” the endangered listing.
“The Biden Administration overlooked vital data when it unlawfully listed the dunes sagebrush lizard as endangered,” said Paxton. “I am grateful that the Trump Administration has recognized this mistake and has committed to reevaluating the listing decision under the proper framework as established by the Endangered Species Act.”
The Fish and Wildlife Service is expected to complete a new evaluation within 24 months.
The attorney general’s office said it will continue to monitor the agency’s review “to ensure that the lizard’s status is assessed using sound science and is in full compliance with the law.”
