Cochise County supervisors direct revisions to Mexican wolf resolution, seek sheriff reports and training

On Tuesday, July 15, the Cochise County Board of Supervisors reviewed a final draft of a resolution on Mexican wolf management and directed county staff to revise language to require sheriff-level reporting, pursue a memorandum of understanding with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Arizona Game and Fish Department, and consider funding training for local ranch-patrol personnel. Supervisors also asked staff to schedule a separate work session to review the updated draft and to place the resolution on the board agenda for a vote the following week.

The board sought changes that would preserve the proposal’s intent while avoiding legal overreach. Dylan Hendel, an attorney in the civil division of the Cochise County Attorney’s Office, said his office “doesn’t make substantive changes unless we believe that a legal change is necessary,” and that his recommended legal edit clarifies federalism principles under the Endangered Species Act and states that the county would enter a memorandum of understanding with the Fish and Wildlife Service and Game and Fish. Hendel said he removed language using the word…