Colorado Gov. Jared Polis criticized for blaming wolf reintroduction program costs on ranchers

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Posted on 12/12/2024 6:31:55 AM PST by george76

Gov. Jared Polis is facing backlash for comments he made during the winter conference of Colorado counties, when he blamed ranchers for the cost of the wolf reintroduction program this year.

The topic of wolves at the Colorado Counties, Inc. conference arose in response to Polis' comments about an ever-tightening state budget. The association represents 63 of the state's 64 counties.

State economists have estimated that the 2025-26 state budget will be short about $1 billion due to lowering inflation and the end of billions in one-time federal money tied to the pandemic.

"I've tried to bite my tongue and sit on my hands, but I can't do it," began Grand County Commissioner Merrit Linke.

He noted that every question from the audience was about funding, whether for roads, schools, or child welfare, but that the state has spent $5 million for 10 wolves from Oregon — and only seven are still alive. The state plans to bring in 10 or 15 more from Canada, and Linke questioned whether that is cost-effective.

"Why couldn't we take a pause, figure out what's the most cost-effective way to do that before we do it? I'm just asking why can't we take a pause?" he asked, which drew a strong applause from the audience.

A coalition of 26 largely agricultural organizations, joined by the counties association, has asked the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission for a rulemaking hearing to pause the next reintroduction of wolves and sent a similar request to the Canadian government, where the next batch of the apex predators is expected to come from. The Colorado Conservation Alliance also made that request last week.

"It's the law," Polis responded.

The livestock growers earlier note that Proposition 114, adopted by a narrow margin in 2020, only required the state to reintroduce wolves by the end of 2023, which already happened, and it did not require anything more than that. Additional wolves are tied to the state's wolf management plan, adopted by the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission.

"We'll be successful with wolf restoration," Polis told the audience. "Until the law changes, that's what we do, and we're going to get it done."

He added: "Once the law is done, you just got to get on board and make it successful."

He said the cost would have been much less if ranchers had not said, “'Don't get them from Wyoming, don't get them from Idaho.'"

"We probably could have done it for a quarter of that cost," Polis said.

He added that if ranchers, such as those from the Middle Park Stockgrowers in Grand County, had asked Wyoming for wolves, the state probably would have given them to Colorado.

The governor's office said through a spokesperson Wednesday that the Polis administration is "committed to successfully implementing the will of Colorado voters and at the same time supporting our agriculture industry."

The statement pointed to Polis' efforts to expand agricultural exports, new laws on ag-related bipartisan tax credits, a "nation-leading right-to-repair law," and opposition to President-elect Trump’s tariff proposal that he said "would harm our economy and ag sector." Polis urged lawmakers to join him in voicing opposition to this misguided plan that would increase costs.

As to his claims ranchers drove up the costs of the wolf program, the statement added: "The reality is the state initially attempted to source wolves from Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho but these commonsense requests were denied following special interest, lobbying, and political games by certain organizations."

"As a result," the governor's office said, "CPW sourced wolves from Oregon to continue to implement the Colorado voter-approved wolf introduction plan. The Colorado Department of Agriculture and Colorado Parks and Wildlife just released more information about how they are effectively managing the mandated wolf reintroduction including grant funding, site assessments, conflict specialist efforts, range rider initiatives, carcass management, and depredation response and the Governor is proud of the work the CDA and CPW are doing to implement the will of the voters in a way that addresses the concerns of ranchers.”

Rural Republican lawmakers in the state House and Senate blasted Polis Tuesday for blaming ranchers for the program's cost.

"The Governor’s comments to Colorado Counties deflect responsibility for mismanagement and misrepresentation of costs onto hardworking ranchers, whose livelihoods are already at risk due to these policies," eight rural Republican lawmakers said in a statement.

Assistant Minority Leader Ty Winter of Trinidad added, “Governor Polis' remarks demonstrate a clear misunderstanding of the challenges faced by ranchers. Colorado ranchers are vital to our communities and economy. Instead of vilifying them, the Governor should address the escalating costs of a program he has supported, despite its growing burden on taxpayers.”

Over the last year, virtually every western state with wolves has refused to send more to Colorado, prompting Colorado Parks and Wildlife to reach out to British Columbia, which is culling wolves because of their impacts on caribou herds. It's coming at a cost — an increase in cases of chronic wasting disease in game animals, which can be risky for people who consume those animals.

Rep. Matt Soper of Delta added the wolf initiative was pushed forward with misleading cost estimates and "has since ballooned into a multi-million-dollar program.

“Ranchers have already endured livestock losses and the threat of harassment, yet they remain committed to feeding Colorado. It is disgraceful to see them targeted for political scapegoating,” Soper said.

Senator-elect Marc Catlin of Montrose pointed out that ranchers have repeatedly expressed their concerns about the program but that CPW's leadership has dismissed those concerns.

"Suggesting that ranchers are to blame for the state's budget shortfall ignores their sacrifices and contributions to our state,” he said.

This administration has disregarded the agricultural community, and the wolf reintroduction "is one of the places where concerns have fallen on deaf ears," added Sen. Cleave Simpson of Alamosa. "Polis must cease with this blame game and work with ranchers to find responsible and cost-effective solutions.”

Sen. Rod Pelton of Cheyenne Wells said the governor should focus on addressing the urban-rural divide and working with ranchers to find real solutions instead of casting blame.

Sen. Byron Pelton of Sterling added that the governor doesn't take accountability for his missteps, "so I am unfortunately not surprised he is blaming our state’s ranchers." He called on the governor to work with ranchers to alleviate the burden his policies have put on the state's agricultural industry.

Polis has long been accused of being unfriendly to the agriculture industry. His agriculture commissioner, Kate Greenberg, had virtually no experience in production agriculture prior to her appointment, breaking a tradition going back at least 40 years. Sources have told Colorado Politics that most of the ag community has never warmed to Greenberg.

In 2019, he encouraged Greenberg's Department of Agriculture, partly responsible for marketing the state's largest agricultural export — beef — to support meatless options, such as the Impossible Burger. He told Colorado Politics at the time that his goal wasn't to kill the livestock industry but to encourage the agriculture staff and community to see the future. The Impossible Burger at the time was primarily made up of soybeans, a product not grown in Colorado.

The wolf issue has sparked outrage from the agricultural industry.

Wolves released last December have killed dozens of livestock and working cattle dogs in Grand, Jackson, and Routt counties this year, and the state's response, through CPW, has been slow, according to ranchers dealing with the predators. A year after the first reintroduction, CPW and the Department of Agriculture announced a program two days ago to reduce conflicts.

The wolf introduction has led to a breakdown in the relationship between private landowners and CPW, which relies on those lands for conservation, access to hunting and fishing, and other programs.

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1 posted on 12/12/2024 6:31:55 AM PST by george76

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2 posted on 12/12/2024 6:33:56 AM PST by george76 (Ward Churchill : Fake Indian, Fake Scholarship, and Fake Art)

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