Idaho House backs $2M for board on wolf control

BOISE — Idaho would spend more than $2 million to eliminate problem wolves and set up a new state board to oversee the effort, under legislation that cleared the Idaho House on Friday.

The measure, first proposed by Gov. Butch Otter in his State of the State address to lawmakers this year, would target wolves in areas where there are problems with wolves preying on wildlife or livestock.

Opponents said Idaho’s wolf population is dropping now, even without spending the money. The state has wolf hunting along with other control efforts managed by the Idaho Fish and Game Department.

Rep. Mat Erpelding, D-Boise, called the move “fiscally irresponsible,” saying, “That’s basically two teachers per school district in Idaho that could be paid for, or we can use it to eradicate somewhere between 300 and 400 wolves.”

Other opponents objected to setting up a new state board. “We have created enough boards in this body to build an ark,” said Rep. Lenore Barrett, R-Challis.

The bill still needs Senate passage and the governor’s signature to become law. It calls for a one-time infusion of $2 million in state general tax funds for the new board, plus annual contributions of $110,000 each from the livestock industry and from hunting license funds.

Rep. Ken Andrus, R-Lava Hot Springs, called for building a fence around Yellowstone National Park and putting all the wolves in there. “We could see how nature takes care of its own, and the more I think about it the more I think we should do this,” he told the House. “I think we would have donations from all over the United States and the world, to build this fence.”