Analysis
What the administration claimed
The Department of the Interior established a new categorical exclusion for timber salvage harvest effective August 24, 2026.
Claimant: U.S. Department of the Interior Department
Agency or office: Department of the Interior
Context
Federal Register notice establishing a CE for timber salvage harvest and responding to public comments; published in the Federal Register on 08/24/2026.
Evidence
The claim is directly stated in the Department's Federal Register notice establishing the CE and specifying its effective date. The notice documents that the Department is adding the CE to its NEPA implementing procedures and gives the effective date as August 24, 2026. The rulemaking record includes public comments both supporting and opposing the CE, indicating the action is consequential and contested.