05-02-2025
Tiffany introduces bill to de-list wolves
CHIPPEWA FALLS — U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, R-Minoqua, has once again introduced a bill to delist wolves from the Endangered Species Act. While he introduced a similar measure last year, Tiffany told the Leader-Telegram last month that he's more confident it will pass this time around, now that Republicans control the House, Senate and presidency.
The measure, dubbed 'The Pet and Livestock Protection Act,' is not subject to judicial review, and it would restore authority back to state lawmakers and state wildlife officials to control the gray wolf population.
'Scientific data, coupled with the rise in wolf attacks in Wisconsin, confirms that the gray wolf population has exceeded recovery goals,' Tiffany said in his announcement to reintroduce the bill. 'Yet, activist judges continue to disregard these facts, leaving livestock, pets, wildlife, and communities vulnerable to further harm. The Pet and Livestock Protection Act will restore management to those who understand local needs best — state wildlife officials — and ensure that out-of-state judges can no longer dictate how Wisconsin manages its wolf population.'
Tiffany said he's supported delisting wolves in Wisconsin and the Great Lakes region since 2011, going back to when he was a state senator. Hunters have seen a notable drop in deer numbers, as wolves are culling them and reducing their numbers, Tiffany added.
When Sen. Tammy Baldwin stopped at a Fall Creek-area farm before the election, she said she generally supports the delisting proposal.
U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colorado, is a co-sponsor on the bill.
'Gray wolves are threatening the livelihoods of our ranchers and farmers with attacks on livestock because our agriculture community has their hands tied by out-of-date policies and progressive legal activism,' Boebert said. 'This bill enacts a common-sense solution shared by administrations of both parties and prioritizes the strength of our agriculture community over predators.
'I'm proud to join with Rep. Tiffany again on this important legislation for our farmers and ranchers and deliver a major victory for our country's agriculture community,'
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 in the lower 48 United States. It also ensures this rule cannot be overturned through judicial review, preventing activist judges, like the California judge who vacated the rule in 2022, from relisting the gray wolf by judicial fiat, the press release states.
With more than 6,000 wolves at the time of delisting, 'the gray wolf has been the latest Endangered Species Act (ESA) success story with significant population recoveries in the Rocky Mountains and western Great Lakes regions,' the press release reads.
However, a California judge overturned the rule in 2022 and relisted the gray wolf. Meanwhile, the wolf population in Wisconsin has increased each of the past three years.
There have been numerous gray wolf attacks in Wisconsin's Seventh District over the last few years, the press release states.
A total of 30 House members are co-sponsors of the bill, including Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Prairie du Chien, and the other four Republican congressmen from Wisconsin.
Supporters of the measure include the American Farm Bureau Federation, National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA), Public Lands Council (PLC), National Rifle Association (NRA), Safari Club International (SCI), Hunter Nation, International Order of T. Roosevelt (IOTR), Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation, Mule Deer Foundation, Blacktail Deer Foundation, Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation, Wisconsin Cattlemen's Association, and Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association.
Last year, four Democrats joined 205 Republicans in voting for it, but the measure stalled in the Senate, which was under Democratic control at the time.
