Bill allowing more wolves to be killed passes Idaho House
BOISE, Idaho (KIFI) -The Idaho House passed Senate Bill 1211 that would allow the killing up to 90% of the wolves in Idaho.
The bill introduced last week will now go to the governor's desk.
The bill would allow the state to hire private contractors to cut the wolf population from about 1,500 to 150. It would also allow the use of night-vision equipment to kill wolves as well as ATVs and snowmobiles.
House Majority Leader Mike Moyle said the bill helps control the wolf population. "We have areas of our state where the wolves are having a real detrimental impact on our wildlife. They're hurting ungulate herds, the elk and the deer. This allows the wolf control board and others to go in and control them also, which we haven't done in the past," said Moyle.
Stanley Representative Dorothy Moon, R-District 8, said she represents wolf central and there are "more wolves than you can shake a stick at."
"I've had so many wolves go past my house, you know. When they are so fearless that they are now walking down the center of a dirt road. That means there's too many of them. Way too many of them. This is a good bill, they're just out of control, we've got way too many wolves in this state, and they're not our wolves, they're Canadian wolves," said Moon.
The Idaho Fish and Game Commission voted to oppose the measure. They said they have concerns that the proposed law would override some of their decisions.
Opponents worry the legislation could lead back the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to take back control of managing the wolves.
"The last time I heard fish and game flew over, it was hard to even find an elk. We have a problem. You're never going to eradicate wolves All this bill is trying to do is soften a little bit. You've got to lower those numbers back a little better, or you're not going to have anything left," Moyle told lawmakers.
