Bills Legalizing Wolf Hunting Making Their Way Through The Legislature
“We had the cities go against us, the major cities – Detroit did as an example – they’re not dealing with the wolves.”
Wolf hunting is back on the agenda for Michigan’s legislature. The state Senate passed a bill Thursday that would legalize wolf hunting in Michigan, if the animal is taken off the federal endangered species list.
Similar legislation was struck down by voters in the past. But state Sen. Tom Casperson (R-Escanaba) said those statewide votes don’t really reflect the needs of those dealing with wolves in their backyard.
“We had the cities go against us, the major cities – Detroit did as an example – they’re not dealing with the wolves. Grand Traverse went against us – they’re not dealing with the wolf,” he said. “If you take a look at the counties that supported us, it was the rural areas that deal with this kind of stuff.”
But the director of the Keep Michigan Wolves Protected campaign, Jill Fritz, disagrees. She said, “People of Michigan have voted on this. They’ve made their position very clear.”
Frtiz argued, “Why is the Legislature taking up valuable time and appropriations to try to force wolf hunting legislation on its citizens?”
The bill contains an appropriation – which would make it immune to a referendum vote.
