GLWA Tells DNR Wolf Depredation “Emergency” Is Political, Not Biological — Launches Public Experiment to Prove It

MADISON, WI — July 30, 2026 — Great Lakes Wildlife Alliance (GLWA) testified today at the public hearing on SS 043-26, the Department of Natural Resources’ proposed emergency rule on wolf depredation claims, telling the Natural Resources Board that the funding crisis behind the rule has nothing to do with wolf biology or rising conflict — and everything to do with politics.

“This was never about wolves,” said Melissa Smith, GLWA Executive Director. “It’s about a manufactured funding crisis, and about political actors who block conservation funding with one hand and demand wolf killing with the other. Biodiversity and endangered species should not be a shell game or a political weapon.”

An Experiment in 24 Hours

To make the point concrete, GLWA ran a rapid public experiment in the 24 hours before the hearing: it asked a small group of supporters whether they would put real money behind a theoretical “Endangered Resources Stamp” — a hypothetical fee modeled on the wolf license cost currently being debated as a funding mechanism. Contributions were matched dollar-for-dollar by a partner donor. Glwa Express that they could essentially raise nearly $5,000 by selling the remaining last six hypothetical stamps by July 31st with the match donation

The response was immediate. In less than a day, with no advertising and no institutional backing, a small group of dedicated supporters proved that the public is willing to fund coexistence and endangered species protection directly — when the mechanism is transparent and tied to science rather than politics.

GLWA reported that the DNR offered no formal response to the experiment during the hearing — but Endangered Resources Fund staff who learned of the results privately indicated they were caught off guard by what a small, unadvertised group of supporters was able to raise in a single day.

The Larger Case

In written comments submitted alongside its testimony, GLWA laid out the broader record: verified wolf conflicts are down, not up; more than 99% of farms in wolf range coexist with wolves without incident; predator-proof fencing has driven conflict toward zero at the farms where it’s been installed; and the Department’s own data shows compensation does not buy tolerance or prevent retaliation. GLWA’s multi-year study further found that the majority of hound-wolf conflicts are concentrated in predictable conditions — extreme heat, wildfire smoke, and unenforced advisory zones — that the agency already has the authority to regulate.

GLWA testified in conditional support of SS 043-26, urging the Board to pair any emergency rule with structural reforms: enforceable closures in Wolf Caution Areas, mandatory suspensions of hound training during heat and air quality advisories, restoration of a per-dog bear hound training license dedicated to the Endangered Resources Fund, mandatory GPS data-sharing, and full public accounting of ER Fund balances.

“Wisconsin can protect hounds, wolves, bears, farmers, and the Endangered Resources Fund at the same time,” Smith said. “But only if the agency uses the authority it already has, instead of asking the public to accept another round of cuts dressed up as an emergency.”