On September 23, 2025, the Department of the Interior (DOI) suddenly issued termination notices to organizations advancing conservation work in communities around the country, including the Institute for Applied Ecology, the Institute for Bird Populations, and the Mid Klamath Watershed Council. The 79 cancelled grant agreements, totaling nearly $14 million, funded important work to protect and manage the nation’s natural resources and cultural heritage. The grant terminations were announced in concert with an article in the online conservative publication The Daily Caller, which boasted about the cancellations on the basis of retribution for a focus on “diversity, equity, and inclusion,” despite none of the terminated agreements implementing or otherwise funding these initiatives.
On December 12, 2025, Democracy Forward submitted multiple Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to DOI seeking documents that could shed light on communications and guidance regarding the termination of these grants, including all public documents from DOI relating to communications between the department’s staff and The Daily Caller. Though the request was initially acknowledged by DOI, the Department failed to produce the documents as required by law.
On February 9, 2026, Democracy Forward filed a lawsuit against DOI to enforce the FOIA, and compel the release of the documents requested.
Timeline
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FOIA Requests are submitted to the DOI
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Complaint was filed
