# United States Department of the Interior *Executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for federal lands, natural resources, and programs relating to Native Americans* The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is the executive department of the U.S. federal government charged with managing and conserving most federal lands and natural resources.[^1] Its programs also reach Native Americans, Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians, four of the five inhabited U.S. insular areas, and historic preservation.[^1] It was established on March 3, 1849, and has its headquarters in the Main Interior Building at 1849 C Street NW, Washington, D.C.[^1] A secretary of the interior leads the department. The secretary sits in the president's Cabinet and reports directly to the president. As of the cited revision, the office is held by Doug Burgum, who was sworn in on February 1, 2025.[^2] In January 2026 the department created the U.S. Wildland Fire Service inside the Office of the Secretary to bring its wildland fire management programs together.[^2] Roughly three-quarters of federal public land falls under the department. Most of the remainder is managed by the Forest Service of the [[Department of Agriculture]].[^3] As of mid-2004 the department held 507 million acres (2,050,000 km²) of surface land, about one-fifth of the land in the United States. The cited article credits it with 476 dams and 348 reservoirs through the Bureau of Reclamation. It also credits 434 national parks, monuments, historical sites and similar units through the [[National Park Service]], and 544 national wildlife refuges through the Fish and Wildlife Service. The Bureau of Land Management, the department's largest land management agency, oversees about one-eighth of U.S. land.[^3] Interior ministries in other countries usually handle policing and internal security. The DOI does not. In the United States those functions rest chiefly with the [[Department of Homeland Security]] and secondarily with the Department of Justice.[^4] The breadth of the department's portfolio has led to the informal nickname "the Department of Everything Else".[^4] ## History ### Formation of the department The first session of Congress, in 1789, weighed creating a department for domestic affairs. It assigned those duties to the Department of State instead.[^5] The proposal resurfaced over the following half-century and had the support of presidents from James Madison through James Polk. It gained new force after the Mexican–American War of 1846–48, when the United States acquired large territories and federal responsibilities expanded. Robert J. Walker, Polk's treasury secretary, argued for it publicly.[^5] Walker's 1849 annual report contended that several federal offices sat in departments unrelated to their work. It named three examples: the General Land Office in the Treasury, the Indian Affairs office in the Department of War, and the Patent Office in the Department of State. He proposed gathering these and other bureaus into a new Department of the Interior.[^5] The House of Representatives approved an authorizing bill on February 15, 1849. The Senate then held it for a little over two weeks.[^6] On March 3, 1849, the day before Zachary Taylor's inauguration, the Senate voted 31 to 25 to create the department, which was established that day (9 Stat. 395).[^6] According to the cited article, Democrats in Congress delayed the bill. They were wary of handing the incoming Whig administration more patronage posts to fill.[^6] Thomas Ewing became the first secretary of the interior. Over time, other departments took over several of the domestic matters the DOI first handled. The cached section is truncated and does not list them.[^6] ## Federal Consulting Group In 2009 the Federal Consulting Group described itself as part of the DOI's National Business Center.[^7] It was organized in three divisions: Consulting, Executive Coaching, and Performance Measurement & Customer Satisfaction. The third division gave client offices access to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). The source describes the ACSI as a means for federal offices to show the Administration and Congress that they comply with the President's Management Agenda and the Government Performance and Results Act.[^7] The group was also paid to broker contracts for other parts of the federal government.[^7] In April 2021 the National Science Foundation Office of Polar Programs reached an agreement with the group. Under it, the group would oversee a needs assessment of the USAP concerning allegations of sexual harassment and assault.[^8] In March 2025 the group was dissolved on the advice of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Its last address was Room 4342, 1849 C St. NW, Washington, DC 20240-0001.[^8] ## American Indians The [[Bureau of Indian Affairs]] conducts part of the department's federal relations with American Indians. The Office of Special Trustee conducts the rest.[^9] As of the cited revision, the assistant secretary for Indian affairs is William Kirkland, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation.[^9] The department has faced disputes over how it accounts for American Indian trusts. Those trusts track the income and distribution of money generated by the trust and by specific American Indian lands. The government leases those lands, for fees, to companies extracting oil, timber, minerals and other resources.[^10] Several cases have demanded an accounting of these funds from units of the Interior and Treasury departments, among them the Minerals Management Service. The cited article describes this litigation as a "15-year-old lawsuit" but gives no start date. Some American Indian nations have also sued the government over water rights and their treaties with the United States.[^10] In 2010 Congress passed the Claims Settlement Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-291). The act provided $3.4 billion to settle the *Cobell v. Salazar* class-action trust case and four American Indian water rights cases.[^10] On March 16, 2021, Deb Haaland, then a member of Congress from New Mexico, was sworn in as secretary. She became the first American Indian to head an executive department and the third woman to head the DOI.[^11] ## Operating units The Office of the Secretary houses the U.S. Wildland Fire Service, the Office of Wildland Fire and the Office of Aviation Services.[^12] Under the Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management, and Budget sit several deputy assistant secretaries. One covers budget, finance, performance and acquisition, including the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization. Another covers human capital and diversity, including the Office of Civil Rights. A third covers public safety, resources protection and emergency services, including the Office of Law Enforcement and Security. A fourth covers natural resources revenue management, through the Office of Natural Resources Revenue.[^12] The Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks oversees the National Park Service and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.[^12] ## Awards The department's highest recognition is the DOI Convocation Honor Award.[^13] The Honor Awards Convocation also presents five other awards: the Safety and Health Award of Excellence, the Aviation Safety Award, the Distinguished Service Award, the Citizen's Award for Bravery and the Valor Award.[^13] ## Regions In 2018 the DOI set up 12 organizational regions for department-wide use. They replaced 49 regions that had been used across eight agencies.[^14] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *United States Department of the Interior* (revision 1376926067, retrieved 2026-10-26), lead — establishes the department's mandate, program areas, establishment date and headquarters. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_the_Interior [^2]: Wikipedia contributors, *United States Department of the Interior* (revision 1376926067, retrieved 2026-10-26), lead — establishes the secretary's role, Doug Burgum's swearing-in on February 1, 2025, and the January 2026 creation of the U.S. Wildland Fire Service. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_the_Interior [^3]: Wikipedia contributors, *United States Department of the Interior* (revision 1376926067, retrieved 2026-10-26), lead — establishes the 75% share of federal public land, the mid-2004 figure of 507 million acres, and the dam, reservoir, park, refuge and BLM figures. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_the_Interior [^4]: Wikipedia contributors, *United States Department of the Interior* (revision 1376926067, retrieved 2026-10-26), lead — establishes the contrast with foreign interior ministries and the nickname. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_the_Interior [^5]: Wikipedia contributors, *United States Department of the Interior* (revision 1376926067, retrieved 2026-10-26), section *History* — establishes the 1789 consideration, presidential support, and Walker's advocacy and 1849 report. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_the_Interior [^6]: Wikipedia contributors, *United States Department of the Interior* (revision 1376926067, retrieved 2026-10-26), section *History* — establishes the House passage of February 15, 1849, the Senate vote of 31 to 25, establishment on March 3, 1849 (9 Stat. 395), the delay by Democrats, and Thomas Ewing as first secretary. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_the_Interior [^7]: Wikipedia contributors, *United States Department of the Interior* (revision 1376926067, retrieved 2026-10-26), section *Federal Consulting Group* — establishes the group's 2009 self-description, divisions, ACSI service and contract brokering. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_the_Interior [^8]: Wikipedia contributors, *United States Department of the Interior* (revision 1376926067, retrieved 2026-10-26), section *Federal Consulting Group* — establishes the April 2021 NSF agreement, the March 2025 dissolution on DOGE's advice, and the last address. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_the_Interior [^9]: Wikipedia contributors, *United States Department of the Interior* (revision 1376926067, retrieved 2026-10-26), section *American Indians* — establishes the BIA and Office of Special Trustee roles and the current assistant secretary. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_the_Interior [^10]: Wikipedia contributors, *United States Department of the Interior* (revision 1376926067, retrieved 2026-10-26), section *American Indians* — establishes the trust-accounting disputes, the water-rights and treaty suits, and Public Law 111-291 with its $3.4 billion settlement. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_the_Interior [^11]: Wikipedia contributors, *United States Department of the Interior* (revision 1376926067, retrieved 2026-10-26), section *American Indians* — establishes Deb Haaland's swearing-in on March 16, 2021. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_the_Interior [^12]: Wikipedia contributors, *United States Department of the Interior* (revision 1376926067, retrieved 2026-10-26), section *Operating units* — establishes the listed offices and assistant secretary structure. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_the_Interior [^13]: Wikipedia contributors, *United States Department of the Interior* (revision 1376926067, retrieved 2026-10-26), section *Awards* — establishes the awards presented at the Honor Awards Convocation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_the_Interior [^14]: Wikipedia contributors, *United States Department of the Interior* (revision 1376926067, retrieved 2026-10-26), section *Regions* — establishes the 2018 creation of 12 regions superseding 49 regions across 8 agencies. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_the_Interior