FWS and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) will amend the regulations implementing section 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). In 2019, FWS and NMFS finalized revisions to 50 CFR part 402, which pertains to interagency cooperation under the ESA. Among other things, the 2019 final rule amended 50 CFR 402.16 to address issues arising under the Ninth Circuit’s decision in Cottonwood Environmental Law Center v. U.S. Forest Service, 789 F.3d 1075 (9th Cir. 2015), cert. denied, 137 S. Ct. 293 (2016). The final rule clarified that initiation of consultation shall not be required for land management plans prepared pursuant to 43 U.S.C. 1712 or 16 U.S.C. 1604 upon listing of a new species or designation of new critical habitat, in certain specific circumstances, provided that any authorized actions that may affect the newly listed species or designated critical habitat will be addressed through a separate action-specific consultation. Now, FWS and NMFS will create a similar exception for reinitiation of consultation on the basis of new information (see 50 CFR 402.16(a)(2)).