The federal government wants to lift roadless protections, including in the Tongass

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is proposing to rescind the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule nationwide, and comments are due Sept. 21.

The rule prohibits road construction, road reconstruction and timber harvest across 58.5 million acres of inventoried roadless areas, with limited exceptions, including in the Tongass National Forest. Rescinding it would shift those decisions to planning at the individual forest level.

It has always been a regulation rather than a law. The Forest Service wrote it in January 2001 after a 14-month rulemaking, and Congress has never codified it. Bills to make it statute and bills to nullify it have both been introduced and neither has passed, leaving the rule to be written and unwritten by successive administrations.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, announcing the rescission, called it an outdated administrative rule that "contradicts the will of Congress" and said removing the prohibitions would allow for fire prevention and timber production.

The Executive Council of the Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, which represents more than 38,000 tribal citizens, adopted a resolution opposing the removal and directing the tribe to send that position to USDA, the Forest Service and the Interior Department. An Alaska Native corporation told USDA the rule limits its rights to access and develop its lands.

SalmonState, the Alaska Longline Fishermen's Association, UnCruise Adventures and The Boat Company say rescinding the rule would damage Tongass fisheries and the local economies tied to them.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy has welcomed federal moves away from the rule. At a June markup, Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chair Lisa Murkowski said of it, "It's never been a good fit for us," and said Tongass forest areas remain fully protected by existing laws and regulations.

Comments go to regulations.gov under docket FS-2025-0001. The Forest Service will also hold subsistence hearings in Alaska.