Grizzly Bear Delisting: Wyoming Congresswoman Hageman Explains 'Mountains' of Evidence

The Case for Delisting the Grizzly Bear

• 🐻 Rep. Harriet Hageman discusses HR 281, the Grizzly Bear State Management Act of 2025, which aims to reinstate the 2017 rule delisting the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly bear population.
• 🎯 The grizzly bear, listed under the Endangered Species Act in 1975, has met and exceeded all federal recovery goals, with its population doubling the set target.

Obstacles to Delisting

• ⚖️ Hageman states that a judge in Montana is preventing the delisting, arguing this decision is unrelated to scientific data or the Endangered Species Act's intent.
• 🗺️ The underlying reason for maintaining the listing, according to Hageman, is to control vast land and water resources, not scientific necessity.

Resource Allocation and Endangered Species Act Implementation

• 💰 The implementation of the Endangered Species Act, whether by the Fish and Wildlife Service or activist judges, hinders the focus on species that genuinely need protection.
• cranes endangered species like the whooping crane and California condor require resources that are being diverted to a recovered grizzly bear population.

Litigation vs. Scientific Recovery

• 📄 Various groups allegedly tie the hands of the US Fish and Wildlife Service by filing numerous petitions simultaneously, overwhelming the agency.
• 🔬 The law mandates automatic listing if an agency fails to respond within a certain timeframe, which Hageman suggests is being exploited.
• 🏞️ She argues that true dedication to endangered species recovery would involve less court litigation and more field science.