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I am pleased to report that the House Natural Resources Committee has approved my bill, the Grizzly Bear State Management Act. This legislation directs the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to …
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I am pleased to report that the House Natural Resources Committee has approved my bill, the Grizzly Bear State Management Act. This legislation directs the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to delist the grizzly bear population in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE) from the Endangered Species List.
As we in Wyoming know, the GYE grizzly has been listed as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) since 1975. Although the population has far exceeded its recovery goals, the species remains listed due to pressure from environmental activists and judicial overreach. This continued listing poses serious risks to public safety, livestock, and other wildlife.
Wyoming has invested significant resources in responsibly managing the grizzly bear population, having now spent over $1 million in those efforts. Continuing to keep these recovered bears under federal protection undermines our state's ability to make science-based decisions and exercise proper wildlife management.
The USFWS has delisted only 3% of the species on the ESA list. That situation is not because we haven’t successfully restored and protected numerous species throughout the country (including the wolves in Minnesota; the grizzlies in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho; and others), but because radical environmental groups and activist judges block such delisting at almost every turn. We had the same situation with the Canadian gray wolf population in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. These organizations figured out long ago that they could dictate land use, development, and habitat management by keeping species listed, regardless of whether they remain either endangered or threatened.
Recovery of the grizzly population in the GYE is a success story, and we should treat it as such. The Grizzly Bear State Management Act will return management authority to the state — where it belongs — ensuring that Wyoming can now implement its robust, science-based management plan to protect our grizzly population. To watch my testimony in support of the bill, visit youtube.com/watch?v=GlDPvIVEJpo.
(Rep. Harriet Hageman is Wyoming's U.S. representative.)
