People v. US DEPT. OF AGRICULT.

LAPORTE, United States Magistrate Judge.

Previously, in these consolidated cases, the Court held on cross-motions for summary judgment that Defendants violated the National Environmental Policy Act ("NEPA"), 42 U.S.C. §§ 4321 -4370d, the Endangered Species Act ("ESA"), 16 U.S.C. § 1531-1544 and the Administrative Procedures Act ("APA"), 5 U.S.C. §§ 701-706 , by issuing the State Petitions for Inventoried Roadless Area Management Rule ("State Petitions Rule") (70 Fed.Reg. 25,654 (May 13, 2005) (to be codified at 36 C.F.R. pt. 294)) without complying with the procedures required by those Acts. The Court thus concluded that the State Petitions Rule unlawfully repealed the Roadless Area Conservation Rule ("Roadless Rule") (66 Fed.Reg. 3,244 (Jan. 12, 2001)) (to be codified at 36 C.F.R. pt. 294).

In the Court's Memorandum and Opinion, issued on September 20, 2006, [1] the Court set aside the State Petitions Rule, reinstated the Roadless Rule including the Tongass Amendment, and enjoined Defendants from taking any further action contrary to the Roadless Rule without undertaking environmental analysis consistent with the Court's opinion. The Court ordered the parties to meet and confer…