Lawmakers Discuss Plan to Delist Grizzlies

The Senate Fish and Game committee heard testimony on Tuesday, Jan. 17 on a divisive bill that would provide Fish, Wildlife and Parks with a plan for managing grizzly bears if they are delisted under the federal Endangered Species Act.

Sen. Mike Lang, R-Malta, sponsored Senate Bill 85 on behalf of FWP, which lays out the state’s commitments to the federal government, which he said is an attempt to have grizzly bears removed from the endangered species list.

“It doesn’t change anything Montana is already doing, but will strengthen our assertion that delisting the Yellowstone and the northern grizzly bear populations are warranted,” Lang said.

The United States Fish and Wildlife Service delisted grizzlies in the Yellowstone ecosystem in 2017, but this was reversed by a federal judge in 2018.

“This is a conversation about being very clear, being very transparent with the public, being very committed with respect to how the state of Montana will manage grizzly bears after delisting,” Quentin Kujala, FWP chief of staff, said.

Kujala said there is a public review process being “pieced together” for the plan, which includes the pillar of meeting the mortality threshold, the calculation of each death compared to living members of the species..

While grizzlies are on the federal endangered species list, it is illegal to harm, harass or kill grizzly bears unless in self-defense.

Removing grizzly bears from the endangered species list would allow for non-lethal and lethal preventive measures to protect Montana residents and their land.

“Federal delisting is a very important issue for human safety and for the safety of our livestock,” said Nicole Rolf, representing the Montana Farm Bureau.

Opponents of the bill said lethal action should not be allowed in the plan and that other threats to the bears need to be studied.

“As one of the slowest reproducing mammals on the planet, grizzlies have always been a conservation-reliant species, and ensuring that grizzly bears remain biologically recovered involves a lot more than just population numbers,” Nick Gevock, representing the Endangered Species Coalition, said.

Gevock said grizzly bears are an important part of the Montana ecological landscape, and the species shouldn’t be prematurely taken off the list; otherwise, there would be major problems sustaining a healthy population within the state.

Some opponents also said they have concerns with FWP’s management of wolves after they were delisted.

“We’ve lost faith in leadership in this administration to manage large carnivores. Until recently, there used to be fair chase; there is no fair chase,” said Marc Cooke, president and board member of Wolves of the Rockies.

Eight proponents testified in support of the bill and eight opponents spoke against it.