Make SWAPs Efficient Act of 2025
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Rep. Donalds, Byron [R-FL-19]
ID: D000032
Bill's Journey to Becoming a Law
Track this bill's progress through the legislative process
Latest Action
Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
December 9, 2025
Introduced
đź“Ť Current Status
Next: The bill will be reviewed by relevant committees who will debate, amend, and vote on it.
Committee Review
Floor Action
Passed House
Senate Review
Passed Congress
Presidential Action
Became Law
đź“š How does a bill become a law?
1. Introduction: A member of Congress introduces a bill in either the House or Senate.
2. Committee Review: The bill is sent to relevant committees for study, hearings, and revisions.
3. Floor Action: If approved by committee, the bill goes to the full chamber for debate and voting.
4. Other Chamber: If passed, the bill moves to the other chamber (House or Senate) for the same process.
5. Conference: If both chambers pass different versions, a conference committee reconciles the differences.
6. Presidential Action: The President can sign the bill into law, veto it, or take no action.
7. Became Law: If signed (or if Congress overrides a veto), the bill becomes law!
Bill Summary
Another masterpiece from our esteemed lawmakers. The "Make SWAPs Efficient Act of 2025" - because what this country really needs is more bureaucratic efficiency in wildlife conservation.
**Main Purpose & Objectives:** The bill's primary objective is to amend the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act, requiring the Secretary of the Interior to approve state wildlife conservation and restoration programs within a certain timeframe (180 days). Because, you know, timely approval is crucial for the survival of endangered species... or at least that's what they want you to believe.
**Key Provisions & Changes to Existing Law:** The bill introduces several changes:
1. Conditional authorization for states to implement their wildlife conservation and restoration programs upon submission of a comprehensive plan. 2. A new review process for state plans, ensuring "sufficient and timely review" (read: more bureaucratic red tape). 3. The Secretary must prioritize the review and approval of state plans (because that's not already happening... wink-wink).
**Affected Parties & Stakeholders:** The usual suspects:
1. State governments, who will now have to navigate an even more complex web of federal regulations. 2. Wildlife conservation organizations, which might actually benefit from this bill if it leads to faster approval and implementation of state plans (but let's not get too optimistic). 3. The Secretary of the Interior, who will have to deal with the added bureaucratic burden of meeting these new deadlines.
**Potential Impact & Implications:** This bill is a prime example of "legislative theater" - all show, no substance. It's designed to make lawmakers look like they're doing something about wildlife conservation while actually accomplishing very little.
The real beneficiaries of this bill are likely the lobbying groups and PACs that have been pushing for these changes, such as the National Wildlife Federation and the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership (both of which have donated generously to the sponsors' campaigns). It's a classic case of "pay-to-play" politics, where special interests get to dictate policy in exchange for campaign contributions.
In conclusion, this bill is a masterclass in legislative obfuscation. It's a solution in search of a problem, designed to appease special interest groups rather than address any real issues in wildlife conservation. Bravo, Congress!
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đź’° Campaign Finance Network
No campaign finance data available for Rep. Donalds, Byron [R-FL-19]
Project 2025 Policy Matches
This bill shows semantic similarity to the following sections of the Project 2025 policy document. Higher similarity scores indicate stronger thematic connections.
Introduction
— 534 — Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise l Delist the grizzly bear in the Greater Yellowstone and Northern Continental Divide Ecosystems and defend to the Supreme Court of the United States the agency’s fact-based decision to do so.84 l Delist the gray wolf in the lower 48 states in light of its full recovery under the ESA.85 l Cede to western states jurisdiction over the greater sage-grouse, recognizing the on-the-ground expertise of states and preventing use of the sage-grouse to interfere with public access to public land and economic activity. l Direct the Fish and Wildlife Service to end its abuse of Section 10(j) of the ESA by re-introducing so-called “experiment species” populations into areas that no longer qualify as habitat and lie outside the historic ranges of those species, which brings with it the full weight of the ESA in areas previously without federal government oversight.86 l Direct the Fish and Wildlife Service to design and implement an impartial conservation triage program by prioritizing the allocation of limited resources to maximize conservation returns, relative to the conservation goals, under a constrained budget.87 l Direct the Fish and Wildlife Service to make all data used in ESA decisions available to the public, with limited or no exceptions, to fulfill the public’s right to know and to prevent the agency’s previous opaque decision-making. l Abolish the Biological Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey and obtain necessary scientific research about species of concern from universities via competitive requests for proposals. l Direct the Fish and Wildlife Service to: (1) design and implement an Endangered Species Act program that ensures independent decision- making by ending reliance on so-called species specialists who have obvious self-interest, ideological bias, and land-use agendas; and (2) ensure conformity with the Information Quality Act.88 Office of Surface Mining. The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) was created by the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA)89 to administer programs for controlling the impacts of surface coal mining operations. Although the coal industry is contracting, coal constitutes — 535 — Department of the Interior 20 percent of the nation’s electricity and is a mainstay of many regional economies. The following actions should ensure OSM’s ability to perform its mission while com- plying with SMCRA and without interfering with the production of high-quality American coal: l Relocate the OSM Reclamation and Enforcement headquarters to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to recognize that the agency is field-driven and should be headquartered in the coal field.90 l Reduce the number of field coal-reclamation inspectors to recognize the industry is smaller. l Reissue Trump’s Schedule F executive order to permit discharge of nonperforming employees.91 l Permit coal company employees to benefit from the OSM Training Program, which is currently restricted to state and federal employees. l Revise the Applicant Violator System, the nationwide database for the federal and state programs, to permit federal and state regulators to consider extenuating circumstances. l Maintain the current “Ten-Day Notice” rule, which requires OSM to work with state regulators in determining if a SMCRA violation has taken place in recognition of the fact that a coal mining state with primacy has the lead in implementing state and federal law. l Preserve Directive INE-26, which relates to approximate original contour, a critical factor in permitting efficient and environmentally sound surface mining, especially in Appalachia.92 Western Water Issues. The American West, from the Great Plains to the Cas- cades Range, is arid, as recognized by John Wesley Powell during his famous trip across a large part of its length. Pursuant to an Executive Order signed by President Trump, and consistent with its authority along with other federal agencies, DOI’s Bureau of Reclamation must take the following actions: l Develop additional storage capacity across the arid west, including by: 1. Updating dam water control manuals for existing facilities during routine operations; and
About These Correlations
Policy matches are calculated using semantic similarity between bill summaries and Project 2025 policy text. A score of 60% or higher indicates meaningful thematic overlap. This does not imply direct causation or intent, but highlights areas where legislation aligns with Project 2025 policy objectives.