On February 10, a federal judge vacated the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (FWS) 2020 rule to permanently delist the gray wolf under the Endangered Species Act. As a result of the ruling, the gray wolf is protected under the ESA in the lower-48 states excluding Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and parts of Oregon, Washington and Utah. The judge’s decision cites that FWS “failed to adequately analyze and consider the impacts of partial delisting and historical range loss on the already-listed species.” For more information on FWS implementation of the ruling, click here.

FWS began the process of delisting gray wolves in the Northern Rocky Mountains in 2011, and after litigation in federal court, eventually turned population management over to the affected states. After an extensive five-year federal monitoring period, population management has completely been turned over to most of these states, except for Wyoming, where lawsuits delayed the implementation of the federal monitoring period until 2017. In 2021, FWS upheld the decision to permanently delist the gray wolf following a review of the 2020 rule under Executive Order 13990.

As intergovernmental partners in wildlife and natural resource management, counties have a particular interest in the implementation of environmental statutes like the ESA. Counties recognize the importance of the ESA as an essential safeguard for America’s fish, wildlife and plants. They also serve as key partners alongside federal and state agencies in implementing ESA regulations and recovery plans. NACo supports updating and improving the ESA to better achieve its objectives, such as the delisting of a species when recovery goals are met.