Interior Secretary Sally Jewell said she's hopeful that her agency will take a decision that the sage grouse does not warrant listing as an endangered species. The decision will have major implications for Idaho and other Western states.

On Tuesday, Jewell told reporters that she is optimistic that a 'not-warranted' listing is possible. By September 30, the US Fish and Wildlife Service should decide whether the birds need the federal protections of an endangered species or not. The issue is quite big in the inter-mountain West as a sage grouse listing may restrict energy development, livestock grazing and residential construction there.

Jewell, who oversees the Fish and Wildlife Service, said she has remained at a distance from the decision, but has applauded the work done to protect the sage grouse habitat and counter the decline in bird's population.

Jewell said, "The efforts on the part of states, the natural resources conservation service, private landowners, nonprofit organizations, energy companies, developers, transmission companies, grazers, ranchers and cattlemen has been incredible".

The issue of sage grouse is one of the most contentious that Jewell is facing. Worried about the restrictions on oil and gas drilling and other development, last year, Congress passed a bill, forbidding federal officials from spending money on listing the sage grouse as threatened or endangered for now.

Western governors and other opponents of listing the species are now worried about future federal action. They are anxiously waiting for the Fish and Wildlife Service to declare that the birds are not endangered.