Liz Cheney: ‘Governor Gordon is Right’ About Grizzly Bear De-Listing

In the wake of Governor Gordon petitioning to have the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly bear de-listed, as well as petitioning to give Wyoming management over the grizzly bear population, Liz Cheney has released a statement in agreement of the Governor's actions.

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"I commend Governor Gordon for filing a petition to require the Biden Administration to delist the GYE grizzly bear and allow Wyoming to manage the population," Cheney stated. "The intention of the Endangered Species Act was good, but the implementation has been ineffective and the law is in dire need of reform. As we have seen with the grizzly bear, the federal government has continued to move the goalposts and unnecessarily prolong its delisting, even though the species has been fully-recovered for nearly two decades.

"In Wyoming and across the West, we have witnessed effective state management resulting in the recovery of the grizzly bear population. It is imperative that the federal government adhere to the work being done on the ground by local stakeholders and empower them to manage these populations without interference.

"As I've emphasized before through legislation and letters, I remain committed to the delisting of the grizzly bear, and I look forward to continuing these efforts in Washington."

Cheney stated that she ahs taken action in a variety of ways when it comes to the de-listing of the grizzly bear, including:

HR 1403: Grizzly Bear State Management Act of 2021 -- Requires the Department of the Interior to remove the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem population of grizzly bears from the list of endangered and threatened wildlife.

Co-signed a letter to Interior Secretary Haaland questioning the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s assessment to maintain the grizzly bear listing as threatened and requesting DOI answer questions regarding their recent species assessment even though in the GYE area they have met their recovery criteria.

Currently, more than 1,000 bears inhabit the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, which covers millions of acres in Wyoming and includes both Yellowstone and the Grand Teton Nation Parks.

Governor Gordon stated that Wyoming has invested $52 million in grizzly bears since they were listed in 1975.

"This is a notable day of celebration not only for the grizzly bear, but for Wyoming. The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly bear has met and exceeded all scientific benchmarks for recovery," Gordon said. "We have proved time and time again that we are experts in wildlife conservation for our state's valued and iconic species. IT's time for grizzly bearsa to be returned fully to the states for management, as our citizens have supported recovery efforts and seen monumental success."

The possibility of hunting grizzly bears is what these current conversations are hoping to achieve.