Matthew Sanders, an environmental law scholar at Stanford Law School, agreed that the changes are “legally questionable,” although the government will likely have arguments to support the move, he said. For example, the rules of the annual contest state that a winning photo “may be featured” on the annual pass, and the administration could also argue that the picture of Glacier on the nonresident pass fulfills the letter of the law, Sanders told SFGATE. These seem to be weak arguments, he added, because “the statute is quite clear about ‘the image’ on ‘the pass’ coming from the annual public competition.”

Overturning the decision would require someone to challenge Trump in court, and both Keiter and Sanders noted that it’s hard to say whether that will happen. “At this point, whether someone might sue is an open question, along with procedural issues that would have to be addressed,” Keiter said.