WASHINGTON, D.C. (RFD-TV) — House lawmakers are making moves in the fight against farm predators, passing the Pet and Livestock Protection Act, which would delist the gray wolf under the Endangered Species Act.
Gray wolves have been on the endangered species list on and off since 1974, and the Pubic Lands Council estimates their population has grown 300 percent over the last 50 years. They were briefly delisted in 2020, but a federal court overturned that rule in 2022.
Leaders from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) say restoring the 2020 rule would give certainty back to cattle producers, warning that wolves are causing them financial and emotional losses.
The bill now moves on to the Senate for consideration.
Nebraska cattle rancher Joe Van Newkirk joins us to discuss wildfire recovery in Nebraska’s Sandhills athe challenges ranchers face restoring basic infrastructure after the fire.
The spending bill keeps animal health and traceability funding in place while trimming several other USDA accounts.
In an exclusive interview with RFD News correspondent Frank McCaffrey, Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-TX) expresses frustration with delays and increasing political divisions surrounding the bill.
The question of whether a traditional, multi-year Farm Bill is a constitutional necessity or merely an outdated artifact of legislative compromise — as opposed to a model of targeted reconciliation and ad hoc assistance — is one of the most critical debates in current agricultural policy.