Wildlife Protection

Senior Counsel

Jeff serves as Senior Counsel to PEER, where he specializes in civil service, scientific integrity, and whistleblower protection issues. Jeff was PEER’s Executive Director from 1997 to 2019 and its Pacific Director from 2019 to 2025. Previously, he was the Policy Director and a staff attorney at the Government Accountability Project, representing whistleblowers from both the public and private sectors. Before coming to DC, Jeff worked in California state government for 17 years, mostly in the State Legislature as counsel to various committees where he drafted hundreds of laws on topics ranging from energy conservation to the rights of employed inventors. Jeff served stints as a deputy district attorney and an appellate court clerk. He is a graduate of the California Correctional Officers Academy.

COMMENTARY | Countering the Western War on Wolves

by Jeff Ruch | November 2, 2022
A science-based approach to wolf and predator management is the key to restoring ecological balance in America’s Western lands ...

Florida’s Manatees Suffering Another Very Bad Year

by PEER | October 24, 2022
Mortality Through September on Track for Second Deadliest Year on Record ...

PEERMail | Save the Right Whales

by PEER | August 22, 2022
Extinction is a choice that humans often make about animals and nowhere is that truer than with the North Atlantic right whale ...

PEERMail | Agency Policies Threaten Iconic Bird

by PEER | June 27, 2022
The Interior Secretary announced a phaseout of single-use plastics in national parks and other public lands ...

BLM Oil Exemptions Undercut Sage Grouse Safeguards

by PEER | June 21, 2022
More Than 80 Waivers from Just 3 Field Offices Prompt Call for Inquiry and Lawsuit ...