Challenging Unlawful Retaliation Against Conservation Groups

This case challenges the Trump-Vance administration’s unlawful cancellation of federal conservation grants issued by the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), which targeted nonprofit organizations based on their actual or perceived viewpoints rather than their performance.

For decades, the Institute for Applied Ecology, the Institute for Bird Populations, and the Mid Klamath Watershed Council have partnered with DOI agencies to restore habitats, protect wildlife, reduce wildfire risk, and support rural communities. 

On September 23, 2025, DOI abruptly terminated 79 grant agreements totaling nearly $14 million. The terminations were issued without warning, meaningful explanation, or due process. Some grants were cancelled just weeks after renewal, while others had already expired or were in the process of closing out.

Public statements by administration officials made clear that the cancellations were driven by hostility toward the organizations’ speech—specifically, perceived support for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) or the use of language recognizing Indigenous communities. None of the terminated grants funded DEI initiatives, and in some cases, organizations had no DEI policies. Nonetheless, DOI coordinated with The Daily Caller, a conservative media outlet, and publicly celebrated the cancellations as part of a political purge.

The plaintiffs allege that DOI’s actions violate the First Amendment by engaging in viewpoint discrimination and retaliation, and the Fifth Amendment by denying due process. The sudden loss of funding has forced organizations to halt conservation projects, lay off staff, and suspend work that protects ecosystems, wildlife, and public lands.

Democracy Forward, alongside co-counsel Tonkon Torp, represents the plaintiffs to stop the unlawful weaponization of federal funding, restore the cancelled grants, and ensure that the government cannot punish organizations for protected speech or ideological disagreement.