Idaho senators are fast-tracking a bill to allow farmers, hunters to kill more wolves

For the second time this session, Idaho lawmakers have proposed legislation that would expand opportunities to kill wolves, potentially whittling the animal’s population to a fraction of its current estimated size.

In a 26-7 vote, senators on Wednesday approved a bill that would allow year-round wolf trapping on private land and scrap wolf tag limits. The bill had been fast-tracked through the Senate after Sen. Van Burtenshaw, R-Terreton, introduced it in a committee on Tuesday.

Burtenshaw told the Statesman that industry representatives came to him with the crafted legislation, but he insisted that the bill is not “a war on wolves.” It would, however, allow for the killing of wolves even if they have not attacked livestock.

Sen. Mark Harris, R-Soda Springs, said no one is trying to eliminate up to 90% of the wolf population, down to the bare minimum the state’s management plan calls for.

“The reality is, we’re going to have over 1,000 wolves in the state at all times. But the current management plan is allowing the wolf population to steadily climb,” Harris told the Statesman on Tuesday. “What we aim to do is stop the growth.”

Critics said the bill is overly broad and opens the door to questionable methods of trapping. The bill would allow for “any method” that’s used to take a wild canine to also be used on wolves.

Garrick Dutcher, program and research director of Sun Valley-based nonprofit Living With Wolves, in a statement Thursday said the bill was based on “hyperbole” and are politicizing an animal that remains a vital species in the state.

“The Legislature is running a hurry-up offense and acting on behalf of a small vocal minority at the expense of your wolves and our wildlife management agency with this last-minute misguided effort,” Dutcher said.

Bill kills wolf tag limit, allows year-round traps

The measure, Senate Bill 1211, would eliminate the 15-wolf tag limit currently in place for hunting and trapping, and extend wolf trapping season on private property to a year-round endeavor. The current trapping season varies in hunting units across the state but is anywhere from one to six months long, typically beginning in the fall and extending to spring.

The legislation would more than double the state wolf depredation control board’s annual budget from fish and game to $300,000. Under the new law, any government agency or private contractor with a permit could kill wolves regardless of whether they have preyed on farm animals.

It also adds a provision for eliminating wolves “when the population has exceeded the recovery goals of the Idaho wolf conservation and management plan in an effort to maintain a balance of all wildlife populations.” Idaho’s wolf management plan states that it will take action to rebuild the population should the estimated number of packs in the state fall below 15 — or about 150 wolves. The wolf population is estimated at around 1,500 in Idaho.

Burtenshaw and Harris said they didn’t know how much of an impact the bill could have on the wolf population.

Supporters say livestock at stake with large wolf population in Idaho

Proponents of the bill said wolves have cost Idaho ranchers hundreds of animals in the past several years. From 2015 to 2020, Burtenshaw said 753 cattle, 952 sheep and 54 other animals were killed by wolves. He said he believes those numbers are underestimated, since wildlife officials sometimes can’t determine how an animal was killed.

But Dutcher said wolves don’t lead to significant livestock losses and doesn’t warrant “such flagrant use of state resources.” Idaho had about 2.5 million cows and calves as of 2019, according to the state Department of Labor. That’s far less than a 1% loss.

Burtenshaw said 584 wolves in Idaho were killed last year, compared to 380 in 2019. Despite those increasing numbers, the wolf population remained relatively unchanged, he said.

Ranchers are continuing to lose livestock, “and that’s why we’re getting so much pressure” to act, Burtenshaw said.

The Statesman has reached out to the Idaho Department of Fish and Game for its figures on wolf depredation but has not heard back.

Fish and Game, which has managed the state’s wolf population since 2011, estimated earlier this year that there are 1,556 wolves statewide. The agency said the wolf population has remained stable in recent years, and moved for expanded hunting and trapping seasons in February of 2020.

The House will need to approve the new bill before it’s sent to Gov. Brad Little.

The Senate bill echoes a House bill introduced in February that sought to reclassify wolves as predators, which would have removed hunting seasons and limits for the species. That bill died in committee shortly after it was introduced.

Andrea Zaccardi, senior attorney for the Center for Biological Diversity, criticized the Senate for fast-tracking a bill that she said could lead to the killing of more than 1,000 wolves.

“The consequences of this bill will be horrendous,” Zaccardi said. “This brutal war on wolves must be stopped, and we urge the House to deny this bill.”