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SJM102.........................................by RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT DOGS - WOLVES - Stating findings of the Legislature and urging Congress to support broadening the federal regulation to authorize citizens to protect their pet dogs and sporting dogs in the same manner as provided for livestock, including dogs that guard or herd livestock; to support the continued funding through federal grants of Idaho's Wolf Depredation Compensation Plan; and to support the broadening of compensation criteria to provide compensation for wolf-related losses of all dogs in the same manner as provided for the loss of livestock. 02/14 Senate intro - 1st rdg - to printing 02/15 Rpt prt - to Res/Env 02/22 Rpt out - rec d/p - to 10th Ord 02/23 10th Ord - ADOPTED - voice vote Floor Sponsor - Schroeder Title apvd - to House 02/24 House intro - 1st rdg - to Res/Con 03/02 Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg 03/03 2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg 03/09 3rd rdg - ADOPTED - voice vote Floor Sponsor - Wood Title apvd - to Senate 03/10 To enrol 03/11 Rpt enrol - Pres signed 03/14 Sp signed 03/15 To Secretary of State
]]]] LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO ]]]] Fifty-eighth Legislature First Regular Session - 2005IN THE SENATE SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL NO. 102 BY RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE 1 A JOINT MEMORIAL 2 TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES IN CONGRESS 3 ASSEMBLED, AND TO THE CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION REPRESENTING THE STATE OF 4 IDAHO IN THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES. 5 We, your Memorialists, the Senate and the House of Representatives of the 6 State of Idaho assembled in the First Regular Session of the Fifty-eighth 7 Idaho Legislature, do hereby respectfully represent that: 8 WHEREAS, in 1995 and 1996, pursuant to provisions of the Endangered Spe- 9 cies Act, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reintroduced wolves into Idaho 10 where they have since been managed by the federal government and the Nez Perce 11 Tribe; and 12 WHEREAS, since reintroduction, the wolf population has grown steadily 13 along with wolf-related livestock losses and other animal losses; and 14 WHEREAS, since the reintroduction, the central Idaho recovery area 15 attained its share of the wolf population criteria necessary to initiate the 16 delisting countdown. The delisting of wolves, however, will not occur until 17 the states of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming have all established wolf management 18 plans that are acceptable to the federal government; and 19 WHEREAS, in 2002, in preparation for delisting, the Idaho Department of 20 Fish and Game, in conjunction with Idaho's Wolf Oversight Committee, completed 21 an Idaho Wolf Conservation and Management Plan to facilitate the transfer of 22 management authority to the state following delisting; and 23 WHEREAS, Montana has also established a plan. As of the date of this Joint 24 Memorial, however, the state of Wyoming has not established a plan that is 25 acceptable to the federal government; and 26 WHEREAS, a new federal regulation, "Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and 27 Plants; Regulation for Nonessential Experimental Populations of the Western 28 District Population Segment of the Gray Wolf," Federal Register, Volume 70, 29 Number 4, Pages 1285-1311 (January 6, 2005) (to be codified at 50 C.F.R. part 30 17), scheduled to go into effect in February of 2005, gives the states of 31 Idaho and Montana more authority to manage wolves inside a federally desig- 32 nated recovery area. The regulation will afford citizens more latitude to kill 33 wolves that are about to attack livestock, including dogs that guard or herd 34 livestock, on private land or public grazing allotments; and 35 WHEREAS, federal regulations do not allow citizens to protect their pet 36 dogs or sporting dogs unless the dog is on private land owned or leased by the 37 citizen, even though wolves do not tolerate any other canines in their vicin- 38 ity, and citizens should be authorized to protect their pet dogs and sporting 39 dogs in the same manner as provided for livestock, including dogs that guard 40 or herd livestock; and 41 WHEREAS, the Defenders of Wildlife compensates citizens for livestock 42 losses due to confirmed or probable wolf related incidents. In 2003, the Idaho 43 Wolf Depredation Compensation Plan was established for the purpose of compen- 44 sating citizens for unconfirmed livestock losses with annual funding provided 2 1 through federal grants. Funding, however, has not always been sufficient to 2 cover all claims; and 3 WHEREAS, wolf related losses of all dogs constitute the loss of private 4 property and compensation should be provided in the same manner as provided 5 for the loss of livestock. Additional funding is necessary to cover the full 6 payment of all claims for loss of livestock and for the loss of all dogs. The 7 state of Idaho reiterates its expectations relating to the commitment of the 8 federal government to provide the state with funding pursuant to 7 U.S.C. sec- 9 tion 426b, provisions of the ESA, all other applicable laws, and the Idaho 10 Wolf Conservation and Management Plan. 11 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the members of the First Regular Session 12 of the Fifty-eighth Idaho Legislature, the Senate and the House of Representa- 13 tives concurring therein, that we urge Congress to support broadening the fed- 14 eral regulation, "Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Regulation 15 for Nonessential Experimental Populations of the Western District Population 16 Segment of the Gray Wolf," Federal Register, Volume 70, Number 4, Pages 17 1285-1311 (January 6, 2005) (to be codified at 50 C.F.R. part 17), to author- 18 ize citizens to protect their pet dogs and sporting dogs in the same manner as 19 provided for livestock, including dogs that guard or herd livestock. 20 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we urge Congress to support the continued 21 funding through federal grants of Idaho's Wolf Depredation Compensation Plan 22 and the broadening of compensation criteria to provide compensation for wolf 23 related losses of all dogs in the same manner as provided for the loss of 24 livestock. 25 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of the Senate be, and she is 26 hereby authorized and directed to forward a copy of this Memorial to the Pres- 27 ident of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives of Con- 28 gress, and the congressional delegation representing the State of Idaho in the 29 Congress of the United States.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE RS 14703C2 The purpose of this memorial is to petition the Congress of the United States to authorize citizens to protect their pet dogs and sporting dogs in the same manner as provided for dogs that guard or herd livestock and to support continued funding through federal grants of Idaho's Wolf Depredation Compensation Plan and the broadening of compensation criteria to provide compensation for wolf related losses of all dogs. FISCAL IMPACT None Contact:Senator Gary J. Schroeder, 332-1324 Senator Don Burtenshaw, 332-1315 Senator Skip Brandt 332-1326 Senator Monty Pearce 332-1339 Representative Lenore Barrett 332-1247 Representative Cliff Bayer 332-1250 Representative George Eskridge 332-1270 Representative Dick Harwood 332-1210 Representative Mike Moyle 332-1244 Representative JoAn Wood 332-1212 SJM 102