Federal Vacancies Reform Act

The Trump Administration repeatedly violated the Federal Vacancies Reform Act by delegating authority to lower-level political appointees to “exercise the authority of” the Directors of its major bureaus, such as the National Park Service and BLM, without obtaining the Senate’s confirmation for them required under law. These appointees manage almost 350 million acres of our national parks and rangelands, covering almost one-seventh of the nation’s land area. They manage tens of thousands of Interior staff and oversee key regulatory functions. PEER and other environmental groups have challenged – and will continue to challenge – these detours around the “advice and consent” of the Senate required under Article 2 of the Constitution.