WASHINGTON – Today,Congressman Rob Bishop (UT-01) and Congressman Jason Chaffetz (UT-03) introduced the State of Utah Wildlife Management Sovereignty Act, which calls for the immediate delisting of the gray wolf in the State of Utah. This legislation will help address challenges associated with the Wolf Management Act [S.B. 36], a bill passed this year in the Utah State Legislature that prevents state wildlife managers from implementing a management plan until gray wolves are no longer considered endangered or threatened by the federal government under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Congressmen Bishop and Chaffetz also joined other western colleagues in introducing the State Sovereignty Wildlife Management Act, which would de-list the gray wolf entirely.
“The Utah Wolf Management plan is better equipped to guide wolf management policy in Utah. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has signaled that Utah is not critical to the recovery of western wolf populations. The Service has further signaled their desire to not actively recover Utah wolf populations,” said Congressman Jason Chaffetz. “Utah is not the epicenter for wolf recovery in the West. It is appropriate to have the wolf delisted in Utah at this time.”
“The optimal solution would be to return the management of wolves to state management agencies across the board. If that effort is not successful, it is vital that Utah be empowered to manage the wildlife found within its borders. Utah state wildlife managers are better suited to address and oversee the health of our state’s gray wolf population. It will be far more beneficial to allow Utah’s experts to manage the gray wolf population within our state boundaries than power-hungry Washington bureaucrats that insist upon a one-size-fits-all approach. I have the utmost confidence that they will deliver a successful long-term management plan that both maintains and improves upon the health of gray wolves as well as other wildlife throughout the state,” said Congressman Bishop.
In 2003, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR) was directed to develop a plan to manage the state’s gray wolf population. In 2005, wildlife managers produced the Utah Wolf Management Plan to maintain and strengthen the health of gray wolves throughout the state. However, the state Wolf Management Act prevents wildlife managers from implementing the plan until wolves are removed from the protections of the ESA statewide. The Bishop-Chaffetz joint legislation would delist the gray wolf in the state of Utah and ensure that state wildlife experts are able to begin implementing a program that will best address the unique needs of the state’s wildlife.
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