Senate considers endangered species amendments

WASHINGTON D.C. (KIFI/KIDK)-Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon testified before Senator John Barrasso’s (R-Wyo) Committee on Environment and Public Works Wednesday on a plan to update and modernize the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA).  

Gordon said an initial proposal made some significant improvements, elevating the role of state wildlife agencies in species management and recovery plans.

“Private landowners, ranchers and farmers across our nation have made amazing contributions to wildlife conservation and should be recognized,” Governor Gordon told the committee. “In my state, farmers and ranchers have demonstrated their commitment to wildlife as the ultimate conservationists.”

Gordon and Barrasso said their over-riding goal was to lessen the impact of excessive litigation.  The governor complained the cost of lawsuits and judicial review during post de-listing monitoring.   

“The states have proven time and time again they are committed to and capable of managing wildlife within their borders,” Gordon said. “They should be given the chance to do so for delisted species without the threat of endless and costly lawsuits that in the end do not benefit the species in question.”