RTF continues to work with federal agencies, researchers, and local stakeholders to expand humane fertility control programs and modernize public-land policy. With proper investment and commitment, the U.S. can transition from crisis management to proactive stewardship—keeping wild horses free, wild, and part of the American landscape for generations to come.

Healthy, genetically diverse herds are vital for the long-term survival of wild horses and burros. But decades of poor federal land-use planning have created conflict between wildlife, livestock, and energy development. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) often uses helicopter roundups as its primary management tool, removing horses instead of managing them where they live. This approach is expensive, disruptive, and unsustainable—leaving more than 60,000 horses in long-term holding and costing taxpayers over $100 million annually.

AMLs are population limits that the BLM sets for each Herd Management Area. Many AMLs are based on outdated range studies and allocate the majority of forage and water to privately owned livestock rather than federally protected wild horses. In some areas, AMLs allow fewer than one horse per 1,000 acres—numbers that fail to sustain natural herd dynamics or genetic viability. Overly restrictive AMLs drive the constant cycle of roundups and removals, rather than encouraging adaptive, ecological management.