House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) allowed a floor vote on Thursday on Rep. Lauren Boebert’s (R-CO) “Pet and Livestock Protection Act” (H.R. 845), which directs the Department of the Interior to remove protections for the gray wolf under the Endangered Species Act of 1973.
After the bill passed by a bipartisan vote of 211-204 (it moves to the Senate for consideration next), President Trump’s Secretary of Interior Doug Burgum warned Democratic Governor of Colorado Jared Polis and the Colorado legislature.
Burgum wrote on social media: “Colorado is prioritizing WOLVES over American ranchers! In January, they released 15 wolves into the wild with NO warning & recently RE-RELEASED a wolf from a pack known to kill livestock. This is a warning: if Colorado does not get control of the wolves immediately, we will!”
Colorado is prioritizing WOLVES over American ranchers! In January, they released 15 wolves into the wild with NO warning & recently RE-RELEASED a wolf from a pack known to kill livestock.
This is a warning: if Colorado does not get control of the wolves immediately, we will!
— Secretary Doug Burgum (@SecretaryBurgum) December 18, 2025
In 2020, the people of Colorado (narrowly) voted for Proposition 114, which allowed the reintroduction of the gray wolf back into the state. The plan is to reintroduce 10 to 15 gray wolves per year over three to five years — with the goal of having 50 wolves in Colorado. The program is now in its third winter “release season.” (There are currently about 20 gray wolves in Colorado.)
Note: Proposition 114 included a provision requiring the state to compensate agricultural producers for any livestock losses caused by wolves, up to $8,000 per animal.
Bradley Williams, Sierra Club’s Deputy Legislative Director for Wildlife and Lands Protection, responded to Boebert’s bill: “Anti-wildlife lawmakers are once again attacking the Endangered Species Act, this time by targeting gray wolves. The science is clear: wolves still need federal protections to recover across their historic range, and stripping them now would put this iconic species at risk.”
Williams added: “We have seen firsthand how vital wolves are to ecosystems like Yellowstone National Park, which suffered greatly from the absence of wolves before their reintroduction in 1995. For more than 50 years, the American people have overwhelmingly supported the Endangered Species Act and want to see it upheld, not undermined. We urge the Senate to reject this bill.”