The U.S. House has passed an amendment that would reinstate the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (FWS) 2011 delisting of the gray wolf from the Endangered Species Act in Wyoming and the Great Lakes region. The modified amendments is to the Sportsmen’s Heritage and Recreational Enhancement Act (SHARE). According to a press statement from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), “frivolous litigation by radical environmental groups,” caused the delisting to be overturned by the Federal Court. Public Lands Council President Brenda Richards said the bipartisan amendment restores the justified decision to delist and return the wolf to the rightful state management of the species.

“The original Great Lakes and Wyoming delisting was supported by healthy populations and successful state management – conditions that exist for wolves throughout the country,” said Richards. While we are grateful that Congress is acting to remove this population segment from the ESA, we hope this leads to a broader effort to delist gray wolves nationwide. The time is right and this is a great opportunity to show that the Endangered Species Act can actual function the way it was intended.”