Legislation to delist the gray wolf from the Endangered Species List passed out of the House Natural Resources Committee. The bill also ensures that action is not subject to judicial review.
The Pet and Livestock Protection Act will restore authority to state lawmakers and wildlife officials to control the gray wolf population. H.R. 845 will now head to the full House of Representatives for a vote.
“The damage to pets, livestock, and wildlife from an unmanaged wolf population can no longer be ignored,” says co-author Congressman Tom Tiffany. “The gray wolf has exceeded federal and state recovery goals, with over 1,000 wolves now thriving in Wisconsin.”
In 2020, the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service delisted the gray wolf in the lower 48 states. At over 6,000 wolves at the time, the gray wolf has been the latest Endangered Species Act success story. However, a California judge relisted the gray wolf under the ESA last year. The Pet and Livestock Protection Act requires the Secretary of the Interior to reissue the 2020 Department of the Interior final rule that delisted gray wolves.
Thirty-two members of Congress cosponsored the legislation, including the entire Wisconsin Republican Congressional Delegation. Stakeholders that support the Pet and Livestock Protection Act include the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation, the Wisconsin Cattlemen’s Association, and the Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association.
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