​NRECA, along with the American Exploration & Production Council, American Petroleum Institute, Independent Petroleum Association of America, the National Association of Manufacturers, and the Utility Water Act Group, filed an amicus brief with the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) in Weyerhauser Company v. United States Fish and Wildlife Service et al. The brief supports the petitioner, Weyerhauser Co.

The case focuses on (1) whether the Endangered Species Act (ESA) prohibits designation of private land as unoccupied critical habitat that is neither habitat nor essenitial to species conservation and (2) whether an agency decision not to exclude an area from critical habitat because of the economic impact of designation is subject to judicial review.

Electric cooperatives maintain 2.6 million miles of distribution line serving 56 percent of the nation. Lines subject to the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) loan program or requiring environmental permits such as wetlands permits can be significantly affected by this type of critical habitat expansion. FULL BRIEF

The Energy and Wildlife Action Coalition (EWAC), which includes NRECA, also previously filed an amicus brief in the case, in support of Weyerhauser Co.