.jpg)
This week, the House of Representatives passed the Trust the Science Act, legislation Congressman Pete Stauber (MN-08) cosponsored to permanently delist the gray wolf in the lower 48 states and ensure this decision is not subject to judicial review.
“The gray wolf is fully recovered and over time, Republican and Democrat Administrations have worked to delist this species. Sadly, anytime an attempt to delist is made, well-funded activists return to challenge these efforts with litigation. This roadblock has placed an enormous burden on my constituents, many of whom are concerned with the decimated deer population, the loss of expensive livestock, and the threat this species poses to family pets. We cannot continue to allow activist judges and radical environmentalists to weaponize the Endangered Species Act at the expense of other species and the communities we represent. That’s why I am proud to support critical legislation to delist the gray wolf and ensure this action is not subject to judicial review, eliminating the back-and-forth we have seen play out in the courts in recent years. It is past time to return management of this species to the states, so they can create responsible wolf management plans that meet the unique needs of their respective state.”
On Friday, May 3, Stauber plans to host fellow House Natural Resources Committee colleagues in Sandstone, MN for a field hearing titled “How Many Wolves Are Enough? Examining the Need to Delist the Gray Wolf.”
Gray wolf populations are thriving in each geographic region where they are located. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources estimates the state’s gray wolf population to be roughly around 2,700, which greatly exceeds the Endangered Species Act’s (ESA) recovery goal. However, many experts with boots on the ground estimate the real number to be anywhere from 5,000 to 6,000.
On Nov. 3, 2020, the Trump Administration published a final rule removing the gray wolf as a protected species under the ESA in the lower 48 United States. In February 2022, the rule was vacated by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The Trust the Science Act would reinstate the 2020 final rule and exempt the rule from judicial review.
Delisting the gray wolf in the lower 48 states has had bipartisan support. In 2013, the Obama Administration proposed delisting the gray wolf in the lower 48 states and presently the Biden Administration is appealing the vacating of the 2020 rule in federal court.
