Wyoming, Idaho weigh options after grizzly hunt ruling
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — State officials frustrated by a judge’s decision to prohibit grizzly bear hunting in the Yellowstone region and put the animals back on the threatened species list will likely appeal but that’s not their only option to contest the decision.
They could lean on Congress to exempt the bears from the Endangered Species Act or take a totally new approach by ceasing to co-operate with the U.S. government on species management.
Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead and Idaho Gov. C. L. “Butch” Otter weren’t hinting at their next move Tuesday. Before Monday’s ruling by a federal judge in Montana, the two states planned to let hunters kill up to 23 grizzlies this fall in the lower 48 states’ first grizzly hunt in almost three decades.
Short of capitulation, the two Republicans would have difficulty making a political misstep. Hunters thrive in both states and mistrust of the federal government and environmentalists runs deep.