WASHINGTON— The U.S. House of Representatives passed a final spending bill today with deep cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of the Interior. The legislation now heads to the Senate where it is expected to pass before President Trump signs it into law.

The bill slashes the EPA’s budget by 4% compared to last year, bringing the agency back to 2012 funding levels when accounting for inflation. The cuts follow a year of unprecedented mass firings by the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, which fired as much as 25% of EPA staff — more than 3,500 employees — deliberately sabotaging the agency’s ability to protect public health and the environment.

“Congress lit the match by allowing Trump and DOGE to cripple the EPA’s workforce and now it’s pouring gasoline on the fire by gutting the agency’s budget,” said Stephanie Kurose, deputy director of government affairs at the Center for Biological Diversity. “This bill hands polluters exactly what they want and guarantees dirtier air, dirtier water, and more communities left unprotected.”

The bill also cuts the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s listing budget by a massive 44%, bringing it to 2004 levels. This will hamstring the program in charge of determining which animals and plants deserve protection under the Endangered Species Act. The Service is currently facing a backlog of more than 400 species awaiting consideration for protection.

The Service lost 18% of its staff under the Trump administration, including more than 500 biologists. Fewer biologists mean the agency has significantly fewer staff tracking the status of plants and animals or working to restore or manage habitats to help wildlife.

“This isn’t just a budget cut — it’s American bumblebees, monarch butterflies and hundreds more species losing their last shot at survival,” said Kurose. “The Trump administration and this Republican-led Congress have been an absolute disaster for the natural world and future generations. Extinction is forever and we don’t have time for this nonsense.”

The final legislation also includes a long-standing poison pill rider blocking Endangered Species Act protections for the greater sage grouse. It does not include an amendment from Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) that would have paved the way for the sale of national parks.