The Biggest Expansion of Hunting Access on Federal Land in American History Is Now on the Table
For decades, hunters and anglers operating on federal public lands have navigated a minefield of overlapping restrictions, contradictory rules, and regulations that varied not just from state to state but sometimes from one side of a refuge fence to the other. That frustration may be on its way out. The Department of the Interior has put forward what federal officials are calling the most sweeping proposal to expand hunting and sport fishing access in the history of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service — a move that could fundamentally reshape how tens of millions of Americans interact with the country's vast network of public lands.
The Department of the Interior announced major actions to expand hunting and fishing access across lands and waters managed by the Department, with the centerpiece being the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's proposed largest expansion of hunting and sport fishing opportunities in agency history, alongside National Park Service actions to remove unnecessary hunting-related restrictions across National Park System units where hunting is authorized by law. Taken together, the scope of what's being proposed dwarfs anything the federal government has attempted on this front before.
What the Proposal Actually Covers
As part of the announcement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing to open or expand more than 1,450 hunting and sport fishing opportunities across 111 stations in 32 states, including 107 national wildlife refuges and four national fish hatcheries. That's not a rounding error — 1,450 new or expanded opportunities is a number that staggers even veteran observers of federal land policy.
The proposal would make more than 92 million acres — over 95 percent of National Wildlife Refuge System lands — available for hunting. It also includes first-ever hunting or sport fishing opportunities at 14 refuges and three hatcheries. For hunters who have spent years scouting maps and watching refuge boundaries, that figure represents an enormous opening of terrain that was previously off-limits.
The Service is proposing more than 500 revisions and deletions to existing regulatory provisions, reducing complexity and making it easier for hunters and anglers to understand and comply with applicable rules. By better aligning federal regulations with state fish and wildlife laws, the proposal reduces confusion for the public, improves consistency across field stations and reinforces the role of states as primary managers of fish and wildlife resources. That last point matters as much as any acreage figure. The regulatory patchwork that currently governs federal hunting land has long been a source of genuine confusion — situations where a hunter legally carrying traditional ammunition on one tract suddenly crosses an invisible boundary into an area where that same ammunition is prohibited.
Specific Properties Opening for the First Time
The rule includes inaugural hunting opportunities at Southern Maryland Woodlands National Wildlife Refuge, the formal opening of hunting opportunities at Grasslands Wildlife Management Area in California and inaugural sport fishing opportunities at North Attleboro National Fish Hatchery in Massachusetts. These aren't marginal parcels — they represent meaningful new hunting terrain in states where public hunting access has historically been limited.
Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge in Iowa, a 6,000-acre property established in 1990 to protect and restore native tallgrass prairie and oak savannas, would be newly open to waterfowl and upland hunting and its big-game hunting would be expanded. The Neal Smith refuge sits in the heart of the Midwest and has long attracted attention for its extraordinary restored prairie habitat — habitat that supports exactly the kind of wild game populations that make upland hunting worth pursuing.
Nearby Hailstone NWR, which has historically been open for migratory bird and upland hunting, would now be open to big-game hunting, according to the Department of the Interior roster. For deer hunters in that region, that's an entirely new game — literally.
The Policy Framework Behind the Push
This expansion didn't emerge from a vacuum. It is the product of a coordinated, multi-layered policy effort that began building momentum almost immediately after the current administration took office. The effort advances President Donald J. Trump's priorities to expand access to public lands and reduce unnecessary regulatory burdens, including Executive Order 14192, "Unleashing Prosperity Through Deregulation." It also implements Secretary's Order 3447, which directs the Department to remove barriers to hunting and fishing access and better align federal regulations with state wildlife management frameworks.
The order directs all DOI offices, within 60 days, to identify lands to open to hunting and fishing, prioritize opportunities recommended by state and tribal wildlife agencies, review outdated and unnecessary restrictions, and ensure that any lands currently closed to hunting and fishing are done so according to law. In practical terms, that means the burden of justification has flipped. Previously, hunters often needed to prove access was permitted. Now, federal managers need documented, legally defensible reasons for any closure.
The new "open unless closed" standard treats all Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Bureau of Reclamation lands as open to hunting and fishing unless a specific, documented, and legally supported exception applies. This philosophical shift — from presuming closure to presuming access — is arguably the most structurally significant change in how federal public lands are managed for sportsmen in a generation.
The National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act: The Legal Foundation
Under the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, the USFWS permits hunting and fishing along with four other types of wildlife-dependent recreation, including wildlife photography, environmental education, wildlife observation and interpretation, when they are compatible with an individual refuge's purpose and mission. That 1997 law was the legal scaffolding on which this current expansion is constructed, and it's worth understanding just how central hunting has been to the refuge system's legal identity for nearly three decades. The Sportsmen's Alliance was instrumental in opening public lands for outdoorsmen, including leading the campaign to pass the 1997 Wildlife Refuge Improvement Act that clarified that hunting and fishing were priority uses of National Wildlife Refuges, landmark legislation that has resulted in millions of acres opened for sportsmen.
Currently, before this proposed expansion takes full effect, hunting, within specified limits, is permitted on 401 wildlife refuges and 36 wetland management districts, while fishing is currently permitted on 343 wildlife refuges and 35 wetland management districts. The proposed rule would push those numbers dramatically higher, transforming refuges from what many hunters have experienced as forbidding, fenced-off preserves into genuinely accessible public hunting grounds.
What the Administration and Industry Leaders Are Saying
Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum has been front and center on this issue, and his language has been pointed. "America's public lands belong to the American people, and they should be able to access them without unnecessary bureaucracy standing in the way," said Secretary Burgum. "Under President Donald J. Trump's leadership, we are expanding opportunities for hunters and anglers, reducing duplicative restrictions and making federal land management more practical, consistent and accessible."
On the most recent and sweeping proposal, Burgum was even more direct: "For too long, access to hunting and fishing on federal lands has been limited by unnecessary restrictions and disconnected federal rules," said Secretary Burgum. "Under President Donald J. Trump's leadership, we are opening more land, aligning with state expertise, and putting decision-making back where it belongs. This is about commonsense access, supporting rural economies, and ensuring the next generation can experience the outdoors the same way so many of us did growing up."
USFWS Director Brian Nesvik — a Wyoming-based wildlife professional with deep roots in the hunting community — has echoed that message consistently. "Hunting and fishing significantly benefit the outdoors by helping manage wildlife populations, promote outdoor stewardship and contribute to local economies. These refuges and hatcheries provide incredible opportunities for sportsmen and sportswomen and their families across the country to pass on a fishing and hunting heritage to future generations," Nesvik said.
The shooting sports and hunting industry responded warmly. "Today's announcement by Secretary Burgum, together with USFWS Director Brian Nesvik and National Park Service Acting Director Jessica Bowron, should be celebrated by all Americans, including hunters, recreational target shooters and everyone who enjoys experiencing the great and beautiful American outdoors," said Lawrence G. Keane, National Shooting Sports Foundation senior vice president for Government and Public Affairs. "This is yet another major step by President Donald J. Trump and his administration carrying through on their promises to deliver for America's hunters and conservationists."
Ducks Unlimited, whose constituency is perhaps the most directly affected by refuge-level hunting rules, also weighed in. "DU supports the Department of the Interior's new directive to increase hunting and fishing access on these important federal lands," said DU CEO Adam Putnam. "This process will streamline federal regulations, make them more consistent with existing state rules, and provide more public-land access for outdoor recreation." Putnam added a specific acknowledgment: "Thank you, Secretary Burgum, for prioritizing America's hunters and anglers."
How This Stacks Up Against Previous Administrations
It is worth putting this moment in historical context, because the scale of the current proposal is genuinely unusual. This proposal would more than triple the number of opportunities and quintuple the number of stations opened or expanded compared to the previous administration, underscoring a strong national commitment to outdoor recreation and conservation.
The first Trump administration also moved aggressively on hunting access. Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt announced the historic opening and expansion of over 850 hunting and fishing opportunities across more than 2.3 million acres at 147 national wildlife refuges and national fish hatcheries, which was described at the time as the single largest expansion of hunting and fishing opportunities by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in history. The current proposal makes that earlier landmark look modest by comparison — 1,450 opportunities across 111 stations versus 850 opportunities across 147 units in 2020.
The Biden administration did expand some access as well. The DOI noted in one announcement that its expansion "triples the number of opportunities and quintuples the number of units open or expanded" under the Biden administration. At that time, then-Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland claimed that the DOI had opened and expanded more USFWS acreage to hunting and fishing "than ever before." Each administration, it seems, tries to one-up the last on this particular metric. But the sheer numerical scale of the current proposal — particularly the 92 million acre figure and the 1,450 individual opportunity expansions — sets a new ceiling.
The National Park Service Component
Often overlooked in coverage of the USFWS announcement is a parallel move by the National Park Service, which carries its own significance. Separately, the National Park Service is proposing the removal of unnecessary hunting-related closures and restrictions in units where the pursuit is authorized by law. The change would improve consistency, reduce duplicative requirements and eliminate barriers that exceed what is necessary for public safety, resource protection or legal compliance. These updates focus on removing unnecessary park-specific restrictions that duplicate state wildlife regulations or repeat existing federal requirements, making it easier for visitors to understand applicable hunting rules.
NPS comptroller Jessica Bowron stated: "Americans should be able to access and enjoy their public lands without navigating unnecessary bureaucracy. These changes improve clarity, reduce duplication and expand access where appropriate while ensuring the National Park Service continues to protect the extraordinary natural and cultural resources entrusted to our care."
Critically, the initiative would not apply to Park Service units such as Yellowstone and Yosemite that are permanently closed to hunting. This is not an attempt to open iconic crown jewel parks to hunters — it's a more targeted cleanup of redundant rules in units where hunting is already a legal, established activity.
The Economic Case: Why This Goes Beyond Tradition
Any policy debate of this magnitude eventually circles back to money, and the economics of hunting and fishing are substantial enough to matter to policymakers on both sides of the aisle. Hunting, fishing and other outdoor activities contributed more than $394 billion in economic expenditures in communities across the United States in 2022, with hunters and anglers accounting for over $144 billion in expenditures. The survey also found that, in 2021, an estimated 39.9 million Americans over the age of 16 fished and 14.4 million hunted.
These activities support jobs, fund conservation efforts and sustain outdoor traditions that connect communities to the land and to each other. Hunting and fishing also provide important sources of protein for many people, which supports the Trump Administration's updated Dietary Guidelines that put real food back at the center of preventing chronic disease and promoting lifelong wellness. That last connection — between wild game harvest and nutrition policy — is a newer rhetorical thread that ties the hunting community to a broader public health conversation.
The Secretarial Order acknowledges the popularity and economic impact of recreation on the Interior's 480 million acres of public land. For rural communities bordering refuges and hatcheries — small towns where a good hunting season can mean the difference between a profitable October and a shuttered diner — expanded federal access is not an abstraction. It translates directly into license sales, hotel nights, fuel stops, and taxidermy bills.
The Refuge System as Public Infrastructure
The National Wildlife Refuge System, established to conserve fish, wildlife and plant resources, is the world's largest network of lands and waters dedicated to wildlife conservation. The system includes 573 national wildlife refuges and 38 wetland management districts, with more than 71 million visitors each year. National wildlife refuges provide vital habitat for thousands of species while also offering high-quality recreational opportunities, including hunting, fishing, wildlife observation, photography and environmental education.
The Fish and Wildlife Service provides significant access opportunities for sportsmen and women, primarily through the National Wildlife Refuge System, which supports more than 2.4 million hunting-related visits and 7.3 million fishing visits annually. Access to NWRS-managed lands and waters for hunting and fishing is critical for outdoor traditions. Those are massive numbers, and they'll grow substantially if this proposed rule clears public comment and is finalized.
Questions, Concerns, and the Path Forward
Not everyone in the conservation and hunting community is without reservations. The question of whether understaffed refuges can adequately manage a dramatic increase in hunting pressure is one that experienced wildlife professionals have raised. Former USFWS director Steve Williams, who led the agency under the second George Bush, has asked whether the activities would disrupt the conservation value of the properties. Williams is mainly concerned that, with $4 billion in cuts to Interior agency staff and budgets, refuge administrators will struggle to adequately balance conservation and wildlife management with increased recreational opportunities.
The question of ammunition restrictions has also surfaced. Importantly, Secretary's Order 3447 directs that restrictions on lead ammunition or tackle may not be included in station-specific regulations, except in rare circumstances, and instead voluntary and incentive-based lead-free programs will continue where already in use. That provision has been a point of contention in previous annual hunt-fish rules, where hunters encountered situations where traditional ammunition was legal on one side of a refuge boundary and prohibited on the other. The new framework aims to eliminate that inconsistency — a change that hunters who use traditional centerfire and shotshell ammunition will appreciate.
The Service is seeking public comments on the proposed rule for 30 days, beginning with publication in the Federal Register on May 27, 2026. The notice is available at regulations.gov, Docket Number: FWS-HQ-NWRS-2026-1223, and includes complete details on the proposed hunting and sport fishing rule and how to submit comments. The comment window is the public's direct line into this process, and hunting organizations have been encouraging their members to participate and make their voices heard.
The U.S. Department of the Interior is preparing to issue a new directive that would make hunting and fishing the default use across most Interior-managed public lands unless specific closures are justified. The policy represents a procedural shift in how access decisions are made, placing the burden on land managers to explain why an area should be closed rather than requiring hunters and anglers to seek permission. That inversion of the traditional burden of proof is the structural change that may have the longest-lasting impact on how Americans hunt public land — not just in 2026, but for decades to come.
Why This Moment Matters for American Hunters
For the American hunter — particularly the working-class guy who doesn't own private land, can't afford a guided outfitter, and counts on public ground for his freezer and his sanity — what the Department of the Interior is proposing is not a minor regulatory adjustment. It's a restatement of first principles: that the land belongs to the people, that hunting is a legitimate and valued use of that land, and that federal agencies should be removing obstacles rather than erecting them.
Hunting and fishing would be treated as a default use of federal lands, not an exception. For public-land hunters especially, that shift matters, even if its effects unfold gradually. Anyone who has spent a frustrating afternoon trying to parse contradictory refuge regulations on a printed map while standing in a parking lot knows exactly why that matters.
In gauging the scope of this action, it more than triples the number of opportunities and quintuples the number of units opened or expanded compared to the previous administration, underscoring President Trump's promise to the American people to enhance outdoor recreation and conservation initiatives. The NRA's Hunters' Leadership Forum called it a demonstration that "the Trump administration respects the key role hunters and anglers play in bolstering the economy." Whether or not one frames it in political terms, the practical outcome for a waterfowl hunter in Maryland, a deer hunter in Iowa, or an angler in Massachusetts is the same: more water to wade, more ground to cover, and fewer bureaucratic hoops to jump through before a single trigger is pulled.
The final rule is expected to be published later in the summer of 2026, ahead of the next hunting season. Between now and then, the public comment period gives hunters a direct say in how that rule is shaped. If past expansion cycles are any guide, the rule that emerges from the process will reflect extensive input from state wildlife agencies, conservation organizations, and individual sportsmen — and it will open more American land to the pursuit of game than any rule that came before it.
