Milwaukee City Wire

U.S. Senator Ron Johnson, representing Wisconsin, in collaboration with Senators Mike Lee from Utah and John Barrasso from Wyoming, has reintroduced legislation. The proposed bill aims to transfer the management of gray wolf populations back to state control and remove the gray wolf from the list of species considered endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act of 1973.

According to Sen. Johnson, “Control of the gray wolf population must be returned to state wildlife agencies, who can best handle the recovered population. This legislation would do just that and provide relief for the farmers, loggers, sportsmen, and others that are most impacted by the gray wolf.”

This development follows a federal court decision in 2022 that reinstated protections for the gray wolf across the lower 48 states, counteracting measures advocated by both the current and prior administrations. As early as 2015, Sen. Johnson has supported a focused strategy to exclude the gray wolf from endangered species protection, pushing for state-led management strategies.

The complete text of the legislation is available for public viewing.