Oregon Natural Desert Association v. U.S. Forest Service
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
465 F.3d 977 (2006)
The Forest Service issued annual operating instructions (AOIs) each grazing season responding to unanticipated conditions like drought and setting the actual terms permittees had to follow, distinct from underlying allotment management plans, forest plans, and permits, with noncompliance triggering formal enforcement notices; the district court held AOIs were not final agency action and dismissed the challenge, and the Forest Service argued AOIs merely implemented earlier decisions.
Whether a federal agency's issuance of annual operating instructions to permit holders for livestock grazing in national forests is final agency action subject to judicial review under the Administrative Procedure Act.