The Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks is appointed by the president of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate. The Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks reports to the United States Secretary of the Interior, who is the head of the U.S. Department of the Interior. The Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks has the direct responsibility for programs associated with the management and conservation of natural resources, including the National Park Service, Fish and Wildlife Service, Air Resources Division, American Indian Liaison Office, Geological Resources Division, and the Water Resources Division. [1] [2]
The current Assistant Secretary is Shannon Estenoz, who was confirmed on June 24, 2021. [3]
The United States Secretary of the Interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior. The secretary and the Department of the Interior are responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land along with natural resources, leading such agencies as the Bureau of Land Management, the United States Geological Survey, Bureau of Indian Affairs and the National Park Service. The secretary also serves on and appoints the private citizens on the National Park Foundation Board. The secretary is a member of the United States Cabinet and reports to the president of the United States. The function of the U.S. Department of the Interior is different from that of the interior minister designated in many other countries.
The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal lands and natural resources. It also administers programs relating to Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, territorial affairs, and insular areas of the United States, as well as programs related to historic preservation. About 75% of federal public land is managed by the department, with most of the remainder managed by the Department of Agriculture's Forest Service. The department was created on March 3, 1849. It is headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C.
Kenneth Lee Salazar is an American lawyer, politician, and diplomat who is the United States ambassador to Mexico. He previously served as the 50th United States Secretary of the Interior in the administration of President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously was a United States Senator from Colorado from 2005 to 2009. He and Mel Martínez (R-Florida) were the first Hispanic U.S. senators since 1977; they were joined by Bob Menendez in 2006. Prior to his election to the U.S. Senate, he served as Attorney General of Colorado from 1999 to 2005.
Thomas Lee Strickland is an American lawyer who was formerly chief of staff to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks in the Interior Department. Strickland served as United States Attorney for Colorado and was the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate for Colorado in 1996 and 2002. He joined WilmerHale as a partner in September, 2011.
Will Shafroth is a conservationist and outdoor recreation enthusiast whose professional career has been in preservation and protection of public lands. Since July 2015, Shafroth has served as President and CEO of the National Park Foundation.
Susan Combs is an American politician, having served elected office in Texas and served as the Assistant Secretary of Policy, Management and Budget at the U.S. Department of the Interior as an appointed official under President Donald J. Trump.
David Longly Bernhardt is an American lawyer who served as the 53rd United States Secretary of the Interior from 2019 to 2021 in the administration of Donald Trump. He previously was a shareholder at the Colorado law firm Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, where he was an oil and energy industry lobbyist and natural resources attorney. He began working for the United States Department of the Interior (DOI) in 2001, and served as the department's solicitor from 2006 to 2009 and deputy secretary from 2017 to 2019.
Carmen G. Cantor is an American diplomat who is serving as the Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Insular Affairs. She previously served as the United States ambassador to the Federated States of Micronesia.
Margaret Everson is an American lawyer who served as the acting director of the United States National Park Service for six months and the acting director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service for 15 months during the first Trump administration. She is the only person to have headed both the National Park Service and Fish and Wildlife Service.
Rhea Suh is a former government official who served as Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management and Budget of the United States Department of the Interior from 2009 to 2014 and president of the Natural Resources Defense Council from 2015 to 2019.
Shannon Aneal Estenoz is an American environmental activist and government official who is the current assistant secretary of the interior for fish and wildlife and parks in the Biden administration.
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