Tagged: gray wolf

A state House committee is holding a hearing on a measure that would change how hunting is managed in Michigan, and bypass a referendum on wolf hunting if it’s on the ballot next year.

Two questions have dominated the hearing on the bill.

1. Whether hunting is an appropriate part of plans to manage wolves in the Upper Peninsula
2. Whether the Legislature should approve a new law to allow wolf hunts before the referendum.

Ellie Mayes circulated petitions to put the referendum on the ballot.

“This is a subversion of democracy. The entire point of the bill is to do an end run around a referendum,” she said.

“It is possible for a minority to be silenced. In this case, the minority is very isolated.”

State Representative Ed McBroom (R-Escanaba) is from the western UP.

He says pets and livestock are endangered in pockets of the UP and how to manage that problem should not be a question that’s voted on by the entire state.

“This issue is isolated to the Upper Peninsula and the people of the UP are at great risk of being totally disenfranchised by the rest of the state of Michigan on an issue that’s critical on the future of our well-being,” said McBroom.

The anti-wolf hunting campaign says the Legislature should not ignore the wishes of 255,000 people who signed petitions to put the question on the ballot.

Petition circulator Judy Brock showed up to oppose the legislation.

“And I’m representing those people who signed the petition who wanted this issue to be put on the ballot. Everyone that signed the petition when we collected knew exactly what this was about, and wanted the opportunity to vote on the issue, and that’s being taken away from us,” she said.

The question would still be on the ballot once the petitions are certified by state elections officials. However, the results of the election would not stop a wolf hunt if a new law is adopted by the Legislature and signed by Governor Rick Snyder.

The referendum effort to stop a wolf hunt in Michigan has been called "a radical agenda" by those opposed to it.

Now, new legislation introduced by State Senator Tom Casperson (R-Escanaba) seeks to deflate that referendum drive.

The Michigan Legislature listed the wolf as a potential game species late last year. The group "Keep Michigan Wolves Protected" says they collected enough signatures to put the question in front of voters.

State wildlife officials plan to recommend Thursday that Michigan hold a wolf hunt this Fall in the U.P.

Gray wolves in Michigan were until recently listed as an endangered species. There are about 700 wolves in Michigan. Farmers say the growing wolf population is a threat to livestock.

The Michigan Natural Resources Commission will receive a recommendation to kill 47 wolves, as part of a hunt, focused in three parts of the Upper Peninsula. The commission may vote next month to set the dates for a wolf hunt.

There is proof that saving Michigan wolves is indeed an issue that Michiganders feel passionate about.

A proposed wolf hunt in Michigan could soon be put on hold, even though the Legislature approved a wolf-hunting bill during the lame duck session last December.

That's because today the group Keep Michigan Wolves Protected delivered more than 250,000 petition signatures to the Secretary of State's office.

The petition calls for Public Act 520, the law that designates the wolf as a potential game species, to be postponed until a voter referendum in November 2014.

It was put together by a coalition of conservation, animal welfare groups, and Native American tribes who joined forces.

It wasn't that long ago that the western Great Lakes wolf population was protected by the federal Endangered Species Act.

State wildlife experts believe there are now around 700 gray wolves in our state. Some farming and hunting groups say the population is large enough for a state-regulated hunt. They argue it's needed to manage the wolf population.

Opponents of a hunt have rallied, insisting the wolf population is still too small, and a hunt is cruel.

Jill Fritz is the director of Keep Michigan Wolves Protected.

She gives us  perspective on the decision by lawmakers last December to designate the wolf as a potential game species in the state and answers the question "is it really time to control the wolf population in Michigan?"

Listen to the full interview above.

People fighting a proposed wolf hunt in Michigan are celebrating a milestone today.

They delivered a quarter million petition signatures to the Secretary of State’s office this morning.   The petition calls for a statewide vote on the law authorizing the wolf hunt.

Jill Fritz is the director of the Keep Michigan Wolves Protected campaign.    She’s optimistic that state officials will validate enough signatures to put the issue on the ballot.