NCAI and TWS condemn the administration’s proposal to rescind the Roadless Rule
Badger-Two Medicine, Montana
tonybynum.com
WASHINGTON, D.C. (August 21, 2026) — The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) and The Wilderness Society condemn the administration’s proposal to rescind the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule in its entirety, which protects about 45 million acres of national forest land, including areas within the Tongass National Forest in Alaska.
This action represents one of the most significant proposed rollbacks of public land conservation protections in U.S. history and threatens forests that are the ancestral and present-day homelands of Tribal Nations. These lands contain sacred sites, subsistence resources, and waters critical to the exercise of treaty rights and cultural practices.
In response, NCAI and The Wilderness Society issued the following statements:
Larry Wright, Jr. (Ponca Tribe of Nebraska), Executive Director of the National Congress of American Indians:
"Tribal Nations possess an inherent and legally recognized relationship with these lands, which remain the foundation of our cultural identities. Attempting to fast-track the removal of the Roadless Rule circumvents the mandatory government-to-government consultation process required by federal law. Upholding the federal trust responsibility means honoring our treaty rights and ensuring that the protection of sacred sites is recognized as an uncompromisable legal obligation, not an afterthought."
Starlyn Miller (Little Shell Chippewa citizen & Menominee and Mohican descendant), Senior Director of Native Lands Partnerships at The Wilderness Society:
“The failure to engage in meaningful government-to-government consultation with Tribal Nations undermines Tribal sovereignty and federal trust responsibilities. This failure disregards Tribes’ deep cultural, historical, and ongoing connections to these roadless lands and the clean water and wildlife they sustain. We stand with Tribal Nations and Indigenous communities in defending their freedom to shape and manage forests that are vital to their cultures, identities and future generations.”
NCAI and TWS call upon the administration to:
- Immediately halt the rulemaking process and keep the existing 2001 Roadless Rule intact;
- Engage in meaningful government-to-government consultation with every impacted Tribal Nation;
- Consult directly with affected Tribal Historic Preservation Officers before authorizing any action that could alter sacred places, cultural landscapes, historic properties or ancestral remains;
- Preserve and strengthen Tribal participation in the stewardship and management of federal public lands; and
- Uphold the federal government’s trust, treaty, historic preservation, and consultation responsibilities.
Lack of government-to-government consultation
The proposed complete rescission fails to provide meaningful government-to-government consultation and, by its very nature, undermines Tribal sovereignty. The U.S. Department of Agriculture itself acknowledges that a central concern raised by Tribal governments is whether the federal government has fulfilled its trust responsibilities through adequate consultation before moving forward with rescission.
Tribal Nations have further warned that eliminating the Roadless Rule’s nationwide protections would force Tribes with limited staff and resources to repeatedly defend ancestral lands through forest-level planning and project-by-project reviews. The proposed rescission will increase road construction and other development in roadless areas, potentially affecting the fish and other wildlife, water, and essential habitats that Tribal Nations and rural Alaska communities rely on for food and other subsistence needs protected under Title VIII of Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA). Tribes have specifically identified risks to sacred sites, traditional gathering areas, water quality, and subsistence resources from expanded industrial activity, mining, and damaging recreational access. Section 810 of ANILCA requires the federal government to assess the impacts of specific land-use actions on subsistence and consider ways to avoid or minimize those impacts, raising concerns about how those protections will be applied to future projects if Roadless Rule safeguards are removed in Alaska.
Furthermore, Tribal Nations throughout the United States have entered into co-stewardship agreements and Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with the Forest Service. These agreements and MOUs provide specific requirements for Tribal consultation that undergird the federal trust responsibility and the federal government’s duty to consult with Tribal Nations. Moving forward with rescinding the Roadless Rule without Tribal consultation undermines not only these specific agreements and MOUs, but also the federal government’s trust responsibility to all Tribal Nations.
NCAI’s opposition to the proposed rescission is grounded in its formal organizational policy, including:
Resolution #MEM-26-040: Adopted as an emergency resolution in June 2026, this resolution reaffirms NCAI's commitment to the 2001 Roadless Rule protections. It maintains NCAI’s strict opposition to a legislative repeal, while ensuring that Tribal Nations retain the right to pursue site-specific stewardship, cultural burning, and forest restoration.
Resolution #SEA-25-102: Adopted in 2025, this key resolution unequivocally opposes the administrative rescission of the Roadless Rule. It formally denounces the shortened 21-day public comment period and the severe lack of meaningful and prior Tribal consultation.
Previous Regional Support: NCAI's recently adopted positions build upon earlier resolutions such as #AK-21-010 and #ABQ-19-029, supporting traditional homeland conservation and opposing specific exemptions to Alaska and the Tongass National Forest.
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About the National Congress of American Indians: Founded in 1944, the National Congress of American Indians is the oldest, largest, and most representative American Indian and Alaska Native organization in the country. NCAI advocates on behalf of Tribal governments and communities, promoting strong Tribal-federal government-to-government policies and a better understanding among the general public regarding American Indian and Alaska Native governments, people, and rights. For more information, visit www.ncai.org.
About The Wilderness Society: The Wilderness Society is a national conservation organization dedicated to protecting America’s wild places since 1935. Through science, advocacy and partnerships with communities and policymakers, we champion the protection of wilderness, national monuments, forests and other public lands that provide clean air and water, wildlife habitat and the freedom to connect with nature. For more information, visit www.wilderness.org.
For media inquiries contact gaby_diaz@tws.org
