The Department of the Interior oversees most federally owned land and natural resources, running the national parks, wildlife refuges, public-land grazing and energy leasing, and the management of water in the West. It is also the lead federal agency for relations with American Indian tribes and Alaska Natives and for U.S. island territories. Its bureaus include the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Geological Survey, Bureau of Reclamation, and Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Created by Congress under the Act to Establish the Home Department (now Department of the Interior) (Act of Mar. 3, 1849, ch. 108, 9 Stat. 395; codified at 43 U.S.C. Sec. 1451), it acts within the authority that statute grants. Its actions are subject to judicial review and to congressional oversight and funding.
