The latest wolf population cap bill isn’t suitable to the public interest.

Call to Action on Senate Bill 139.

On Thursday, Jan. 25, 2024, Wisconsin Republicans sent a bill to Gov. Tony Evers that would mandate state wildlife managers set a cap on the state’s wolf population. This legislation usurps the public opinion concerning the DNR’s Wolf Management Plan. The legislation is nothing more than special interests throwing childish tantrums when an adult says no! You can’t do that; it’s not good for you. In this case, the legislation is not suitable for the public interest. This is not the first time they have forced their will against public outcry when in 2012, they created and manded a law requiring a hunt on an endangered species fresh of the ESA!

The NRB approved the DNR’s latest plan after overwhelming public support. The plan is an adaptive plan that looks to the future of wolf management in Wisconsin amidst constant court battles, on and off the ESA, one 2021 brutal wolf hunt, and news cycles fueled by big-bad-wolf propagandists.

The plan was over a year-long development that considered all the voices of wolf stakeholders and finally came together after much public input. The public’s interests show that they don’t favor trophy wolf hunts and support most of the components of the adaptive plan. The plan mirrors other wildlife management plans, such as Black bears and deer, except being managed for hunting. Yet, on January 25, 2024, Wisconsin Republicans wrote a bill, passed it, and sent it to the Governor’s office. The wolf population is estimated at around 1,200, and the writers of the bill want the population capped to their desired goal of 350, as they have openly pushed for decades.

One of the authors, Senator Rob Stafsholt, mentioned that it would take two years to bring the wolf population down to 350. Yet, the authors maintain the bill mentions no hard population numbers, but they want a cap on the number of wolves. This statement proves they are talking out of both sides of their mouths. Now we are getting into “Alice in Wonderland,” where the public encounters numerous incoherent legislators authoring a bill that takes away all good sense for justice as is an indispensable compass in collective decision-making,